Champions League final, 30/05/2026
After a gruelling final in Budapest, it was Paris Saint-Germain who won this year’s Champions League after beating Arsenal on penalties. Kai Havertz had opened the scoring for the Gunners in the first few minutes of the match, before Ousmane Dembélé equalised from the penalty spot on the hour mark.
On the eve of the team’s second Champions League final in as many seasons, the Paris Saint-Germain players were adamant that their motivation to win remained the same as last year (or even greater, as Luis Enrique put it). While it would be difficult to top their emphatic win over Inter last season, Saturday’s final in Budapest did offer this generation of Parisien players a chance to seal their place in European football’s pantheon.
The Asturian would not have any surprises in store when picking his starting eleven, even if Warren Zaïre-Emery had a strong case to start over Achraf Hakimi at right-back. Instead, he picked all ten of the outfield players who had started the final in Munich last year.
It was Arsenal who struck first, though. Kai Havertz, who already had a Champions League-winning goal to his name before this season, sprinted through on goal down the left after pouncing on Marquinhos’ deflected clearance, before beating Matvey Safonov from a tight angle with an emphatic finish.
PSG managed to get their foot on the ball in the ensuing passages of play, with their first clear chance coming from a Kvaratskhelia ball down the line for Fabián Ruiz. The Spaniard was unable to replicate the tight-angle finish that Havertz had managed earlier, however.
However, the Georgian did find it difficult to beat Cristhian Mosquera on the left wing, while chances to pierce through were few and far between for the front three as a whole. The midfield trio, meanwhile, were evidently short of inspiration.
Another clear sight at goal came just before half-time, as Fabián Ruiz set Nuno Mendes free down the left and into the box. The ensuing cross came back to the Spaniard, whose header went well over the bar. The Gunners’ defence was otherwise impenetrable, as Ousmane Dembélé soon resorted to a desparate shot from range which sailed over the bar. A similar attempt from Doué minutes later led to the same result.
Arsenal had a chance to double their lead in stoppage-time, as another quick combination set Havertz through on goal. A crucial sliding challenge from Marquinhos prevented the German from getting his shot away, though. At the other end, Raya was equal to a stinging shot from Fabián Ruiz from the left.
The start of the second half saw a similar pattern of play, with PSG dominating possession but barely troubling Raya. Even as space appeared to open up, the final ball would constantly be intercepted by an onrushing Arsenal player.
The turning point of the match came on the hour mark, as Kvaratskhelia finally got the better of Mosquera and was fouled by the Spaniard in the box. The spot-kick was dispatched by Ousmane Dembélé, who sent the Arsenal goalkeeper the wrong way.
The reigning champions had a chance to clinch victory fifteen minutes later, as Kvaratskhelia set off down the left and looked to be bearing down on goal. His shot, though, was deflected by Lewis-Skelly and onto the bar, with Raya having been caught off-guard. In any case, the momentum was clearly with PSG as the final ten minutes of the game approached.
Having come on for Kvaratskhelia seconds before, Bradley Barcola had a chance to make himself the hero with a counter-attacking chance of his own five minutes from time. Raya emerged from his goal in time to smother the chance, though.
Vitinha found himself in space on the edge of the box to curl a shot minutes later, but his effort would scrape the top of the net. There was another chance on the counter-attack for Barcola, just as Arsenal had sent their defenders into the box on the stroke of full-time, but his strike went well wide.
The start of extra-time saw most opportunities go Arsenal’s way, although the substitute Noni Madueke was unable to make a difference with his corner deliveries. The England international would be at the heart of the action again towards the end of the first-half of extra-time, having seemingly been brought down by Nuno Mendes. The referee deemed the challenge to be a legal one, however, as replays showed it was Madueke who had locked his arm around the full-back’s.
Ramos almost found himself with an open-goal chance at the start of the second half, although Raya was able to slap away the ball which had been headed on by Barcola just in time. The rest of the match would be more open-ended, with chances falling at both ends as the teams grew increasingly tired. David Raya’s wayward clearances were perhaps the most telling sign of that.
The last chance of the match would be a corner for Arsenal, a situation which shaped up to be the perfect set-up for a winner. Stretched to the limit, PSG were able to push the chance away and send the match to a penalty shoot-out.
PSG took an early lead in the shoot-out, before Raya’s save from Nuno Mendes allowed Arsenal back into the match. The decisive penalty fell to Arsenal centre-back Gabriel, whose shot flew well clear of the bar.
Matvey Safonov, 6 – The Russian could have done better to close down Havertz for the opening goal, although he did also make an important stop to cut Bukayo Saka’s stinging cross midway through the first half. He made no saves in the shoot-out but was enough of a presence to force Arsenal into two misses.
Achraf Hakimi, 5
Marquinhos, 5
Willian Pacho, 6
Nuno Mendes, 5
Fabián Ruiz, 4 – Starting the Spaniard over Zaïre-Emery may have been the most eyebrow-raising choice in Luis Enrique’s set-up. Operating across the left flank in the first half, the midfielder was found in several goalscoring positions but could keep neither of his two chances on target, and lost the ball too often in other positions. He did improve in his ball retention in the second half, however.
João Neves, 7 – While his compatriot and midfield partner was often lacking in ideas, especially in the first half, Neves put in a tireless shift in midfield and made some crucial interceptions and incisive passes across the pitch. One of the very few PSG players to have played at a consistent level across the match.
Vitinha, 6
Désiré Doué, 6 – A much-improved second-half performannce after struggling in the first. The accuracy of the Frenchman’s crossing and interplay with his attacking partners improved dramatically after the break, even if he would have no direct goal contribution.
Ousmane Dembélé, 6 – The Ballon d’Or winner was able to start despite fears that a recent calf injury would hamper his involvement. Arsenal’s defensive approach after their goal meant that the Frenchman’s now-characteristic high pressing was scarcely on show in Budapest, and he struggled to cut through the Gunners’ dense block. Instead, he made the difference by converting a penalty on the hour mark. Came off for Ramos at the end of regulation time.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, 5 – A misfiring performance in the first half, but he made up for it with a much more dynamic second. The Georgian finally got the better of Mosquera on the hour mark to win the penalty, before later being brought off for Bradley Barcola. The French international would go on to miss a couple of potential match-winners before the end of the ninety minutes.
David Raya, 5
Gabriel Magalhães, 7
William Saliba, 6
Myles Lewis-Skelly, 7
Bukayo Saka, 4
Leandro Trossard, 4
Kai Havertz, 7 – Mikel Arteta’s decision to start the German over Viktor Gyökeres instantly paid off, with Havertz putting the Gunners ahead within the opening minutes of the match.
