Paris Saint-Germain are the Champions of Europe for the second year in a row. The defending champions beat Arsenal on penalties to retain their title
The Parisian team dominated the game after conceding an early goal at the hands of Kai Havertz. They made the necessary changes, which led to a dominant final stat sheet that included 74% possession, 21 shots on goal, and an expected goals count of 1.77.
How PSG dominated
They are able to dominate the game thanks to their midfield combination of Vitinha and João Neves. Vitinha finished the game with the most touches (162), pass completions (141), passes received (127), carries (133), carry distance (671 meters), progressive carries (22), and shot attempts (four).
Neves, on the other hand, finished with 111 touches, 88% passing completion, six recoveries, 77% of ground duels won, 60% of aerial duels won, seven passes in the final third, and 11 touches in the Arsenal box. He dropped back next to Vitinha whenever Arsenal were pressing and gave his center backs another outlet.
Aside from their midfield combination, PSG looked more comfortable late in the game despite having to substitute out Ousmane Dembele, Vitinha, Neves, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. They also looked much more confident when it came to the penalty kicks to decide the game.
Arsenal was close
The Gunners had all the right ideas when it came to what they wanted to do in this game. They came out and scored the opening goal in the sixth minute. After that, their plan was to burn as much time as possible, while making PSG burn as much energy as possible to even the match.
However, this was their 63rd game of the season, and they were visibly tired despite bringing in eight players at the start of the season. During this game, they used all six substitutions, including bringing off Martin Ødegaard, Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, and Havertz, who all could’ve taken penalties.
What this game means
PSG becomes the second team in history to win back-to-back Champions League titles since the competition was restructured in 1992. What’s more is that manager Luis Enrique is now tied with greats like Zinedine Zidane, Pep Guardiola, and Bob Paisley while sitting only behind Carlo Ancelotti.
Arsenal is still without a Champions League title. They made it back to the finals for the first time in 20 years. They lived on the margins all season to win the Premier League. However, it came back to bite them on the biggest stage.
PSG have defended their European title and are in a great position to do so again next year. Arsenal, on the other hand, has a lot of questions that they need to answer.
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