It was a story of so near yet so far for Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League final. They took the lead in the fifth minute of the game. It was a familiar goalscorer for Chelsea fans. Kai Havertz opened the scoring for Mikel Arteta’s side. When he had done the same for the Blues five years back, it had proven to be the winner.
There was no such luck this time around. PSG came back into the game through Ousmane Dembele’s spot kick in the second half. And ultimately, it ended 1-1 after 120 minutes.
Arsenal were the first to fluff their lines because of Eberechi Eze but PSG allowed them a way back into the game. But it was not to be their night, with Gabriel missing the crucial penalty, which crown the French side back-to-back European champions.
Chelsea did not waste the opportunity to take a dig at Arsenal. Of course, the result meant that they remained the only team in London to win the Champions League. They made sure to remind everybody of that immediately after the game ended, encouraging people to visit “London’s Home of Trophies” and even plugging in the Stadium Tour at Stamford Bridge. Well played, admin.
Arsenal came so close but could not get the job done
Getting the better of PSG in big game finals is not easy. Arsenal learned that the hard way. For a long time, it had looked like they had a game in control. But when PSG did find a way through, Arteta’s side did not seem to know what to do.
For a large portion of the game, Arsenal just seemed like they were trying to play their way to the final whistle. And they did get there.
But unfortunately, it did not work out for them. They could not win on penalties. Again, perhaps winning the Champions League from the spot is not everybody’s cup of tea.
Chelsea still have a long way to go to get close to Arsenal
Obviously, this opportunity might have been used by the Chelsea official account as well as the club’s supporters to poke a bit of fun at the expense of their London rivals. But the reality of the situation is that there is a huge gap between the two at the moment.
Arsenal won the Premier League this season. And they were a whisker away from being champions of Europe as well.
Chelsea are a million miles away from these games right now. It is hard to believe considering they did win the competition just five years back.
Sourav Mahanty
Sourav Mahanty has covered teams like Chelsea, Celtic, Real Madrid, Manchester United, PSG and more over a career that has now lasted a decade. His work has been featured on Sports Illustrated, Athlon Sports, SB Nation, FanSided, The Sportster and aggregated through Bleacher Report and NewsNow. Outside of football, he is also interested in basketball, cricket and professional wrestling.
View all articles →