On the eve of a new Champions League campaign kicking off, Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal players are better equipped to go further than their quarter-final finish last season.

A year ago, the Gunners played their first game in the competition for six years, and the 4-0 win against PSV Eindhoven was a first taste of Europe’s premier competition for many of the players, including plenty of established international stars.

That enthusiasm took the Gunners all the way to the last eight for the first time since 2010, but 12 months on the squad have touched down in Italy ahead of their game against Atalanta with a lot more experience of what it takes to win at this elite level, Mikel feels they will have learnt from any mistakes to help them get off the perfect start at the Gewiss Stadium on Thursday night.

“That’s the aim,” he said in his pre-match press conference. “Last year was a great campaign for us. We got to a place where we hadn’t been as a club for 16 or 18 years, but we weren’t happy or satisfied at all because we want more. They showed their hunger. I think we have the ability, we certainly have the quality – and now we have to prove it,” said Arteta.

“We learnt certain lessons and in certain aspects, we can do better. It’s as well-being conscious that these are the top elite clubs in Europe and they know how to play and how to compete in games. Hopefully we have learned and we can show the composure, the determination and the belief that is very important at these stages. Tomorrow we know what we are going to be facing – and it’s going to be tough.”