“Now it’s Gabriel’s turn… The Portuguese sports site To Ball holds his breath. Arsenal’s Brazilian defender rushes for a shot on goal… and “rate !†create Observer, Lisbon media. In London, the newspaper The Guardian howl à tue-tête : “Paris Saint-Germain retains its Champions League title!â€
At the end of a match “exhausting†(1-1 at the end of regular time), the Parisians managed to win their second title in the most prestigious European competition in Budapest, Saturday May 30, after the penalty shootout (won 4-3), announce The Telegraph, British newspaper.
“No club had won two Champions Leagues in a row since the three titles won by Real Madrid in 2016, 2017 and 2018†, observe the Madrid daily life The Country, from the Spanish capital. A few kilometers away, Mark only has a thought for Luis Enrique. The Spanish coach “propels PSG to the pantheon of the Champions League†, exclaims the sports newspaper.
Another Madrid daily, The Worldis euphoric in front of the work of the Asturian technician: “The biggest stars have followed one another, hundreds of millions have been spent and a multitude of coaches have paraded. Until PSG decided to hire not a coach, but an artist. Luis Enrique created a work of art.â€
Arsenal facing “the best team in Europeâ€
The enthusiasm of the Spaniards contrasts with the sadness of Telegraph. Arsenal to réussi à have tête “the best team in Europe for almost 135 minutes†, applauds the journalist Telegraph, Sam Wallace. But the recent English champion must finally admit defeat.
At half-time, however, The Guardian maintained that the first act of this European final was a “rave for Mikel Arteta†, the Gunners coach. Launched on the left side, Kaï Havertz opened the scoring with a cannon shot which pierced the Parisian cage from the 6th minute of play. Once in front on the scoreboard, Arsenal closed the game. “None of those teams in history, especially Franco Baresi’s AC Milan [dans les années 1980-90]would have been proud to deliver such a defensive performance… smiled the British daily before the start of the second act.
In the Parisian locker rooms, Luis Enrique had to “find a solution†to break the London lock, put back The Country. The trigger came from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, cut down in the Arsenal area. Penalty. Ousmane Dembélé, the reigning Ballon d’Or, was responsible for putting the two teams back on level terms by deceiving David Raya (1-1, 65µ‰).
Marquinhos “seizes the trophy…â€
As the minutes ticked by, many Arsenal players seemed “completeness is puisés†, ensures the Telegraph. Paris almost took advantage of the fragility of its opponent at the very end of regulation time, which made the commentators jump. The Independent : “Incredible! Arsenal leaves [Bradley] Barcola escape. Once again, he seemed to be heading towards the goal on his own, but was unable to control the ball perfectly and ended up hitting the side net.†Extra time, then penalties. Gabriel misses, Paris exults.
A few minutes later, says The Guardian, Marquinhos, the captain of PSG, “seizes the trophy…â€
