Tuesday night was one of the best nights to be a Gooner, ever!
The one and only Arsenal from North London reached their first Champions League final in 20 seasons after agonisingly losing 2-1 to Barcelona in 2006, despite leading heading into the final 16 minutes of that encounter.
This time around, Bukayo Saka grabbed the goal that sealed Arsenal’s place in the final and secured one of the club’s most historic 1-0 victories, beating Atletico Madrid on a night that will live long in the memory for Gooners everywhere.
Until last year, talks of winning the Champions League felt completely unrealistic, with all eyes focused firmly on the Premier League. But this season everything has changed, with Arsenal now in contention to complete a possible double while leading Manchester City by five points with just three matches remaining.
Arsenal have finally returned to Europe’s elite stage
The narrow victory over Atletico Madrid proved just how far Arsenal have come as a football club. It was only eight years ago that the same Spanish side knocked us out in the Europa League semi-finals, before Chelsea battered us 4-1 in the 2019 Europa League final a year later.
It will not be easy against PSG in the final, a world-class team who know a thing or two about goals and possession football – a team that broke Gooners hearts last season when they won the Champions League semi-final in Paris, knocking us out of the competition – but Arsenal have as good a chance as anyone of becoming Champions League winners.
Many say clubs should focus on conquering their domestic league before thinking about Europe, but if you can challenge for both at the same time, why not?
To win the Premier League would feel like justice after recent seasons, but to become champions of Europe would be complete heaven for Gooners who have never experienced those words in that context before.
Arsenal have now reached two Champions League finals, the same number as Manchester City, who have already gone on to lift the trophy in recent years. It is now up to Mikel Arteta’s side to prove they belong at the very top of modern football after narrowly missing out on the title in previous campaigns.
Can Arteta’s Arsenal create a new era?
Overall, Arsenal have not lifted a European trophy for 32 years, dating back to the 1994 Cup Winners’ Cup triumph over Parma, in a competition that no longer even exists.
At some point, that European drought has to come to an end too.
The question now is whether Arsenal can rise to the occasion and avoid being remembered as the team that always finishes second, or if this squad can begin a new era of domestic and European dominance unlike anything we have seen before.
Only May and June will tell.
COYG!!!
Liam Harding
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I think we’ll win both major trophies as long as none of the existing players gets injured
I believe Arteta and the players have learned a lot from the previous EPL title races and last season’s UCL semifinal
The huge bonuses from the richest club in EPL will also motivate them
If we get the league title wrapped up I predict we pull off another Parma ’94 and grind out a 1-0 win in Budapest, the momentum will be fully in our favour and I think we’ll just graft it out and get the job done, here’s hoping 🤞
I think we can definitely beat Psg if we play to our best level in the final even if they are also that their best level. We played them last season with half the team missing and still competed, they were more clinical and Donnarumma was in god mode for the tie.
The league is currently in our hands win our matches and it’s done. City also have a harder schedule both in term of opposition strength and recovery time.
Of course they can win both.
It’s a challenge of course but everything that is worth having in life is worth fighting for.
Arsenal have momentum – a tweak of tactics and the return of Saka who seems to be approaching his best has invigorated us. COYG.
My head and heart has always said the league is ours to win this season and we are very close to doing it
My heart has for a while said cl but head says to many good teams in the other half of the draw for us to do it but here we are 1 game away from the club going down in history as cl winners
to win ot we would need to pay at 100% and everypayer to a.man would need to be a 8 plus
PSG imo are one the best teams i have seen. I put them up there with the great Barcelona teams
They have found there mojo again after a slow start to the campaign
They are bearable and we can beat them but I feel they would need to turn up and play at 80% for us to do that
We proved in the semis final last year the fist 20 to 30 mins of that match in the 2nd leg we should have taken them to the cleaners bar some great saves from there Former GK and poor finishing
History being made is 1 game away and for the next 20 odd days I will float around on cloud 9 and feel top of the world. It is such a great feeling and i hope the boys can see it through so I feel like this all summer
Onwards and upwards
I believe Arsenal has the capacity to beat PSG if all the major players are available and play at their best. There is nothing magical about PSG. Aston Villa beat them in the group stages last season and so did Liverpool. If Arsenal come with a winning mentality, they will beat PSG. Arsenal has strong defence and good midfield players as well as good forward players in the form of Gyokeres, Saka, Trossard, Martinelli and Kai Havertz. So, the team is not inferior in any way. This game will be determined by the mentality of the team. If Arsenal come with a positive mentality and play as a compact unit, they will beat PSG.
BTW, I forgot to mention that Arsenal also beat PSG in the group stage last season. So it is not implausible that they can do it again.
Nice points discussed Liam. After awful April the month of May is giving Arsenal the best. May it continue!!!
I wish to put the record straight on our 2006 CL final to Barcelona in Paris. We played for more than 70 minutes with 10 players after our first choice goal keeper, Jens Lehman, was sent off for a questionable foul! Despite that, we still managed to score first through Sol Campbell. However, later on fatigue took its toll and there were questions about Samuel Etoo’s winning goal for Barcelona. In the end, we lost 2-1 but after a very valiant fight. I don’t see any reason why we can’t repeat this feat.
For DR
In that game Eto scored the equaliser (which was offside) and Belleti scored the winner despite us having 2 clear chances to win it before they equalised (most notably Henry’s tame shot).
Agree with you about the sending off: It was a yellow and Barcelona as part of that attack which should have been given to them as advantage.
Of course there was a dive for our free kick where we scored.
Generally bad refereeing.
Indian Gunner London,
Thank you for giving a more balanced view regarding the refereeing in that final. The foul that was given regards Campbell was never a foul.
Welcome Derek
I say it the way I saw it on that night.
Also, the goalscorer for Barcelona on the right hand side was Jiuli with their very Ist attack (talking about the goal that should have been given and Lehman should never have been sent off as there were covering defenders). With a full compliment of 11, I reckon we would have won it.
Barcelona *scored* as part of the attack
David Rusa,
Just a couple of points regarding you’re memory of the 2006 Champions League final. Firstly whether you think it a questionable foul, they had the goal chalked off from that. And our keeper got sent-off. In hindsight I wish their goal had been given instead, and we kept 11 players on the field.
As for you’re second point regarding the winning goal, I believe I’m right in saying that Eto scored their equalizer. The name of their second goal currently escapes me.
Where are you Herr Drier, HELP!.
DEREK
Yes. Etoo scored the equaliser
The winner was scored by Beletti
Freddy,
Thank you.
It’s definitely doable, but I don’t want to touch the money.
As Thierry keeps saying, let’s stay in our lane (we also need to remember we could still win nothing this season, sorry for the neggies, just being realistic).
The team should park the UCL now completely, and just focus on the PL. We are favourites to win that as we speak, and if we get over the line come 24 May, the players will be going into the CL final full of confidence! Just hope they won’t be too hungover…
Agree Kia PSG is quite beatable. Will it happen? Who knows, it could depend on how much sleep big gabby gets or a hundred other things.
Also agree – UCL? What UCL? Oh, that thing on the 30th.
Let’s also keep in mind, the last time we played PSG they had 11 shots (6 on target), and we had 19 shots (4 on target).
This shows that if we were more clinical that day, things would have been very different.
As soon as we started playing outstanding defence with the controlling play again (a few seasons ago), it was possible to win the UCL or any other tournament we really focused on. Is this the year? We’ll see and hope for the best as always.
That’s exactly it BB, there’s so much talk about PSG’s attack, but not so much on our defense.
If we can keep them quiet, who knows?
But yes, let’s discuss this on the 25th… Got the blinkers on right now.
It’s all about “Focus, Focus. No Hocus Pocus”. Just sayin…😁
THE PREDICTION OF THE SEASON. It’s time.
We need to win the PL first and West Ham away is the most difficult fixture in our list. We have to see how the players handle the pressure of possibly MC beating Brentford a day earlier and being only 2 points ahead (come matchday).
West Ham will be the most motivated home side we’ve played all season and regardless of their cumulative league position, they do have some very good talent such as Bowen, Summerville, Dino in the back, and quality full backs on their day.
Assuming city130 win, I’m really hoping for Brentford to keep that GD reasonable and not let city130 do one of those 6-0 jobs.
Bruised Banana
West Ham have a dilemma. If they attack us, then they become vulnerable at the back. If they park the bus, then they will have to deal with the pressure from their fans, especially if we score first
I agree Freddy. I believe they will attack and play a very high line from the very beginning. I’m hoping we can take advantage of that even if they can be more aggressive for longer periods with their rest advantage. If not, it could be a very difficult day. We very much need to be clinical in our passing.
The match against West Ham on Sunday is like the most important of the remaining 4, because it will give a huge positive momentum swing for us to finish off Burnley and Crystal Palace, then have much confidence and freedom to play PSG and win them.
The West Ham match will be extremely tough, but I believe if Arteta sticks to the same lineup he has used for the past 2 matches, then we can beat West Ham.
Of course we can but also not win anything, one game at a time and one hope at a time 🤞
I noticed so many getting carried away with PSG gung-ho demolition approach to the first tie with Bayern Munich. I responded here saying no team would succeed in banging 4, or 5 against us and I hold this to be true still.
If you care to, why not have a glance yourself at those 18 teams PSG have to compete with and compare it with our own EPL competition. Our league isn’t easy to top much less win outright.
Granted that getting to the PSG have shown to be an awesome outfit – but make no mistake my Arsenal are equally awesome : had we not proven the hardest to score against in european competition we would not be in the position we find ourselves. No romanticizing, in all honesty we’ve shown thus far to be the best. 1 more CL hurdle for arsenal to put the icing on the cake.
…Granted that getting to the final etc…
Historic double is surely not less than the INVINCIBLES. Both are trailblazers in their own right. But this double is a club only record while the Invincible is all encompassing English league record. Let’s do it Gooners worldwide. COYG!!!
we haven’t won the double yet though
I’d be happy with one trophy, but if they made it two, I could live with it.
You are a hoot
Let us concentrate on West Ham first, then Burnley and then Palace
As for PSG, we can beat them
One game at a time …forget all the clickbait
We don’t need to beat West Ham 5-0 .. Just need 3 points
COYG
That’s true, however, there are still 2 other games that could make a difference to how the season ends
Today is absolutely massive against West Ham.