PSG beat Arsenal on penalties to claim the Champions League title

PSG overcome Arsenal in the penalty shootout to claim their second successive Champions League trophy at the Puskás Arena in Budapest on Saturday evening.

While words from both Mikel Arteta and Luis Enrique took centre stage ahead of the big game, the eldest of the two Spaniards had the last laugh as PSG kept the pressure on and sealed the Champions League title. The Gunners scored first in the match, thanks to a Kai Havertz shot from the near post of Matvei Safonov, and Arsenal dug deep most of the time after opening the score within five minutes from the start.

Arteta’s men set their sights on defending with a low block, as most of their players were seen playing in their own half, soaking up the pressure from PSG stars. Arsenal’s defence held firm throughout the game, and Paris Saint-Germain could only find the net courtesy of an Ousmane Dembele penalty strike in the 64th minute.

The match stayed 1-1 till 90 minutes of regulation time, and little action was seen from both sides in extra time since the English top-flight champions defended well, giving PSG no chance to take the lead. The difference was made in the shootout when Eberechi Eze missed his spotkick, followed by Gabriel Magalhaes, who had the opportunity to push the game into sudden death, however, failing when it mattered the most. Nuno Mendes’ miss made the Arsenal fans roar at the other end of the stadium, but PSG came through with the likes of Achraf Hakimi and substitute Lucas Beraldo.

With this Champions League triumph, Luis Enrique puts his name alongside Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola, Bob Paisley and Zinedine Zidane as the fifth manager to lift the trophy thrice in their careers. PSG fans are expected to celebrate late into the night since this was an early kickoff.