Champions League live updates: Arsenal vs PSG

A lot has changed since Arsenal last featured in a Champions League semifinal.

Barack Obama had not long been inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States; the iPhone 3G was the hottest mobile on the market; and ‘Poker Face’ by Lady Gaga was No. 1 on the US music charts.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was still playing for Everton the last time the Gunners reached this stage and the size of the occasion is certainly not lost on him.

“You sense the energy, the enthusiasm, that it’s something unique,” he told reporters during his pre-match press conference.

“It’s probably one of the biggest games that the Emirates has seen since we built it. We are making history. It’s a beautiful story right now, but we want much more.”

The last time Arsenal reached this stage of the competition it was beaten 4-1 on aggregate by Manchester United, including a chastening 3-1 defeat in the home leg at the Emirates.

Arteta is confident that his players are ready to face what is one of the biggest nights in the club’s history.

“We have to have the feeling that we have to hold [the players] back tomorrow to go on that pitch and express themselves,” he said.

“It’s a moment now to say: ‘OK, this is who we are, this is who we are as a team, this is who I am as an individual and I’m going to put my very best in there to make it happen.’

“Play with that mindset and let yourself go. Live the now, the present. This is where we are. We are so fortunate.”