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Saka seals Arsenal's place in Champions League decider
AP • May 6th, 2026 1:58 pm
Bukayo Saka | Photo: AP
The last time Arsenal played in the Champions League final, Bukayo Saka was still four years away from joining the club's academy.
Now Saka, the winger who first signed for Arsenal at age 8, has put his club back onto the biggest stage.
Saka scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday (NZ time) to put Arsenal into their first Champions League final since 2006 and only their second ever.
No wonder he was reluctant to stop celebrating with the crowd and teammates after the final whistle and do a TV interview on the field.
"You're taking me away from the celebrations, man," Saka told Amazon Prime with a laugh.
"It is so beautiful. You see what it means to us and what it means to the fans. We're so happy."
The 24-year-old was on hand to slot in the rebound after Leandro Trossard's shot was saved by Jan Oblak in the 45th minute to put Arsenal up 2-1 on aggregate in the second leg of their semi-final.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta embraces Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard after their victory | Photo: AP
The Gunners' stingy defence did the rest as Arsenal kept a clean sheet at home in all three knockout rounds.
The team also conceded a competition-low four goals in winning all eight of their matches in the league phase.
It will only be Arsenal's second final in Europe's premier competition, having lost the 2006 title match to Barcelona.
This time they will face either defending champions Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich in Hungary on May 30.
PSG won the pulsating first leg of their semi-final 5-4, with the second leg in Munich on Thursday.
It could prove a special season for the London cub, now just one game away from their first European Cup title and three games away from a first Premier League crown in 22 years.
The Gunners are guaranteed the domestic league title if they win their remaining three matches, after closest rivals Manchester City were held to a 3-3 draw at Everton on Tuesday.
"Now we are in the final of the Champions League and we're fighting for the Premier League," Saka said.
"It's a beautiful a story and I hope it ends well in Budapest."
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Atletico had a chance to equalise in the 51st minute when Giuliano Simeone chased down a poor backward header from William Saliba to round goalkeeper David Raya, but centre back Gabriel did just enough to make him put his effort wide.
Atletico were then denied a possible penalty when Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori stepped on the foot of Antoine Griezmann in the area. Referee Daniel Siebert instead awarded a free kick to the hosts for an earlier incident.
Atletico coach Diego Simeone grew increasingly agitated on the sidelines as the decisions went against his club and the search for an equaliser proved fruitless.
He was eventually booked for his remonstrations in stoppage time.
Simeone led his team to the Champions League final in 2014 and 2016, losing both times to Real Madrid.
Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres had a great chance to double the lead on a counterattack in the 66th minute when Piero Hincapie picked him out with a cross, but he side-footed his effort over the bar.
As expected, this match-up never looked likely to turn into the kind of free-flowing back-and-forth attacking play of the PSG-Bayern game, as Arsenal's defence held firm.
Whichever team win that second semi-final, the final in Budapest promises to be a contrast in styles.
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