Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta has admitted that his side will "need to go to a different level" if they are to get over the line in the future for the Premier League title.
The Gunners missed out on lifting the trophy on the final day despite recording a 2-1 victory over Everton at the Emirates Stadium.
Manchester City's 3-1 success against West Ham United saw the Citizens finish two points clear at the top of the table, with Pep Guardiola's side winning the competition for the fourth time in a row.
Arsenal won 28, drew five and lost five of their 38 league games, while they scored 91 times and conceded just 29 during an excellent campaign but ultimately just fell short.
Arteta has admitted that his team will have to reach new heights in the future if they are to wrestle the title away from Man City and also hold off competition from other clubs.
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Arsenal just fall short in title race
"I'm very proud. First of all congratulations to Manchester City, they are the champions, they've been incredible since December," Arteta told TNT Sports after the clash with Everton.
"We have tried with everything that we had. You can sense how much we wanted it, we really tried. It wasn't enough unfortunately.
"It feels good because success can not only be measured by comparing to somebody else, we need to understand what we are doing. We've beat every record this club ever had apart from winning it.
"This is the most competitive league ever in the history and we have to be better. Now we need to find ways we have to improve."
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Arteta proud to "reconnect" the club and fans
Arteta also spoke of his pride at being able to "reconnect" the club and the supporters, claiming that it has been "the most fulfilling thing".
"That's the most fulfilling thing. One of the dreams I had when I joined was to reconnect everybody, to really bring this place to a different level. We are on that journey right now," he added.
"I feel sad because I really wanted to deliver that trophy today because it would mean the world to them but we are closer, that's for sure.
"Now we have to be more determined, very courageous, very ambitious, and we need to go to a different level. We need to deliver."
Arsenal have won England's top flight on 13 occasions, with their last success coming in 2003-04, finishing 11 points clear of second-placed Chelsea at the summit.
Matt Law
