05/30/26 03:21:00
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05/30 15:20 CDT PSG wins back-to-back Champions League titles after shootout
victory against Arsenal
PSG wins back-to-back Champions League titles after shootout victory against
Arsenal
By JAMES ROBSON
AP Soccer Writer
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) --- Winning the Champions League was so nice, Paris
Saint-Germain had to do it twice.
PSG became back-to-back European champion by beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties
in a dramatic final in Budapest that ended 1-1 after extra time on Saturday.
"It's incredible," captain Marquinhos said. "From the very first day of this
season, the coach said it's hard to win, and winning twice is even more
difficult. So we all had to get back to work. That was the mentality."
Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes fired the last of his team's penalties over
the bar to hand PSG the shootout win.
The French giant is only the second team to retain the trophy in the modern era
after all-time king of Europe Real Madrid.
Luis Enrique became a three-time winner as a coach and has moulded a team that
is simply too good even for the best the continent has to offer. That includes
an Arsenal team that won the Premier League last week and topped the first
stage of the Champions League with a perfect winning record, finishing 10
points and 10 places ahead of PSG.
That mattered little in Puskas Arena as PSG reaffirmed its status as the
dominant force in European soccer.
"It's even more special because we knew before the match how difficult it would
be," Luis Enrique said. "I think it's deserved over the course of the whole
season, even if the final was very closely contested."
After demolishing Inter Milan 5-0 in last year's final, PSG endured a tougher
foe as Arsenal sat deep and relied on the best defense in the competition.
PSG dominated possession but created little after going behind to a Kai Havertz
goal in the sixth minute. It took an Ousmane Dembl penalty in the 65th to
level the score and take the final to extra time for the first time in 10 years.
PSG coach in elite company
By going back to back, Luis Enrique achieved what his good friend Pep Guardiola
could not after winning Champions Leagues at Barcelona and Manchester City.
Luis Enrique joined Carlo Ancelotti, Bob Paisley, Zinedine Zidane and Guardiola
in an elite group of coaches with at least three European Cups.
The next target will be to emulate Madrid's three in a row under Zidane from
2016-18. And with a starting lineup in Budapest with an average age of less
than 24, Luis Enrique has built a team that has the potential to dominate for
years.
"It's crazy, it's crazy. We're going to enjoy it first, and after we're going
to work and work again because we want more. We are really hungry. We are a
young team, and we know we are really ambitious. So next season we have to go
again," Dsir Dou told broadcaster TNT Sports.
Having waited 22 years to get its hands back on the Premier League trophy,
Arsenal's wait in Europe goes on.
This was its 226th game in the European Cup or Champions League without lifting
the trophy. No other team has played so many without being champion.
There were times when it looked as though that streak would be snapped.
Especially when PSG looked so short of ideas after going behind to Havertz's
breakaway early goal.
By scoring so early the tone was set and Arsenal seemed comfortable to sit back
and soak up pressure. PSG struggled to find openings and looked edgy in
possession.
On an evening that kicked off with a pre-match show by rock band The Killers
that sounded off in the acoustics of the stadium, PSG also fell a little flat
and registered just one shot on target in the first half.
It was given a way back into the final when Cristhian Mosquera brought down
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the box and referee Daniel Siebert pointed to the spot.
Ballon d'Or holder Dembl made no mistake, firing low to the left as Arsenal
goalkeeper David Raya dived the wrong way.
Red flares were lit by PSG fans, likely as much in relief as celebration.
There were rare chances for PSG to win in regulation. Kvaratskhelia hit the
post in the 77th after a rapid breakaway and substitute Bradley Barcola wasted
another opportunity to seal it at the death when firing wide.
Arsenal was limited to 24.7% possession --- the lowest in a final since records
began in 2004, according to stats provider Opta. But Mikel Arteta's dogged and
determined team pushed PSG all the way, even in the shootout.
Eberechi Eze missed an earlier spot kick for Arsenal but Raya saved from Nuno
Mendes to keep the score level.
Lucas Beraldo converted the last of PSG's spot kicks, meaning Gabriel had to
convert to take it to sudden death. But he blasted high over the bar into a
section of PSG fans, who erupted in celebrations along with their two-time
champion team.
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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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