ARSENE WENGER USED TO moan about how he couldn’t compete with oil-rich clubs owned by the government until the cows came home.

Mikel Arteta just keeps going, and his success is getting more and more amazing.

Bukayo Saka was on target as Arsenal beat PSG 2-0

Kai Havertz also scored in the routine Champions League win

Arsenal really scared Manchester City of Abu Dhabi nine days ago when they tied 2-2 at the Etihad. Now, they were easily beating Qatar’s pride, Paris St. Germain.

Gianluigi Donnarumma, PSG’s goalie, made it easy for Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka to score in the first half, which was helpful.

Arteta’s team, on the other hand, has now won four straight games against Pep Guardiola’s City. They look more and more at ease back in the Champions League, where they were during Wenger’s last few years in charge.

Each of these teams is one of the best in Europe, but neither has ever won the European title. France’s winners are not as likely to finally win Old Big Ears after this game. Instead, Arsenal looks much more likely.

What a great forward they have in Havertz. He scored the first goal by hitting in Donnarumma’s mistake. Havertz has already given his team the win in a Champions League Final.

At the top table, another person from Arteta’s side, Saka, who could be very interesting, also seems calm.

There were many good things about this game for the Gunners. They bought midfielder Mikel Merino from Real Sociedad for £32 million in the summer, but he got sick and missed the first few games. He made his start in the second half.

While Gabriel and William Saliba are on defence, they are also great at stopping the other team’s players from having fun.

In 14 games across all leagues, Arsenal hasn’t lost. What’s great is that they don’t even seem to miss leader Martin Odegaard, who is hurt.

Even though PSG wasn’t as good as they were with Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe on the team, and this big group stage is hard to understand, there was still a lot of excitement in north London because Arsenal hadn’t been in this competition in six years.

Havertz opened the scoring with a fine headerCredit: ReutersThe German looks to be loving life as a striker

In their section of the Clock End, the Parisien fans dressed in black were trying to look scary. There were bright orange fireworks going off, and the Champions League song was playing in the background.

The Arsenal are getting used to being back among the best teams after years of watching Europa League games on Thursday nights.

These days, PSG is younger, more balanced, and more serious. Also, Ousmane Dembele was kicked off the team for breaking the rules, and manager Luis Enrique fired him.

That showed that things had changed in the locker room since the days when egotistical players ran the show at the Parc des Princes.

Early on, they were making things hard for Arteta’s team. However, Saka did hit the post after Arsenal’s new fullback Riccardo Calafiori ran inside to set him up.

Havertz had just wasted a good chance that was set up by Saka and the raiding Jurrien Timber when he scored the first goal 20 minutes in.

Leandro Trossard supplied a wicked centre from deep on the left and Donnarumma panicked, straying off his line and flapping, as Havertz escaped his marker Pacho and netted with a straightforward header.

Saka got the second as his free-kick went all the way throughCredit: GettyThe ace set the tone for victory with an all-round top performance

While Havertz is sometimes called a “false nine,” the German player has many of the skills of a real centre forward, among other things.

For Donnarumma – the keeper who broke English hearts in the 2021 Euros final shoot-out – it had not been a happy start, after he’d already received treatment following a collision with Gabriel Martinelli. 

Many of the French fans, who were shirtless like the Georgians in the cold drizzle, kept yelling and dancing, and their team said they would respond.

First, Nuno Mendes hit the post with a shot. Then, Achraf Hakimi ran down the right side, cut inside, and caused David Raya to save with his legs at the near post.

So Arsenal’s second goal was both against the flow of play and a complete accident. But no one at the Emirates couldn’t care less.

Saka won a free kick near the goal line and then sent in a low, inswinging ball that Martinelli, Gabriel, and Thomas Partey all tried to hit but missed. But Donnarumma did it too.

Maybe it was all just another brilliant idea from Nico Jover, Arsenal’s set-piece master. Or maybe it was just completely crazy.

After that gift, Saka really began to purr, bringing out the Elvis hips, toasting his full-back and centring for Trossard, only for Donnarumma to suddenly remember that he is an elite goalkeeper.

At half-time, Arteta replaced Timber with Jakub Kiwior and soon his side almost conjured a gem of a third goal – Trossard to Havertz, who chipped a pass to Martinelli, who volleyed too close to Donnarumma.

Mikel Arteta was delighted to see Arsenal get their first European win this termCredit: AFPLuis Enrique had to see his PSG side suffered their first loss in all competitions

PSG had their moments – Kang-in Lee shooting into the turf and up onto the crossbar before a decent penalty shout for handball against Calafiori fell on deaf ears.

But usually Arsenal’s back four were there, relishing the dirty work, bumping chests and fists, keeping the sheet clean.

Wenger made a mistake. There is a way to compete with the state-owned super-rich. It’s just a lot of damned hard work.