BUDAPEST — Bukayo Saka has a message for those who believe that the heavy legs of the Arsenal squad might be the deciding factor in the Champions League final. It will be moments of magic, not minutes in the tank that carry the day. Naturally he sees no reason why those won’t break his way in the fashion they did not last season.
Arsenal have been put through the wringer in a 63-game season that reaches its conclusion in Budapest’s Ferenc Puskas Arena on Saturday. Between deep runs in both domestic cups, a competitive title race that was won in the final week and the run to a first Champions League final in 20 years, Mikel Arteta has had to ask a lot of his players. Across his squad, five players have completed over 4,000 minutes in all competitions. No one from Saturday’s opponent Paris Saint-Germain, has cleared that number. Three clear 3,000 compared to nine for Arsenal. Even those like Jurrien Timber, Viktor Gyokeres and Saka who have had long spells on the sidelines would be among the minutes leaders in France.
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Some of that is a reflection of the injuries that PSG have suffered, though their opponents have struggled plenty on that front too. Luis Enrique has felt able to rotate his squad in Ligue 1 in a fashion that Arsenal could never have realistically managed against the vastly more competitive field of the Premier League.
Then again, Arsenal have had six days off since their last game, where a heavily rotated side won at Crystal Palace. They are, Saka said, ready to go again. “A game like this is not going to be decided on minutes,” he added. “It will be decided on moments and which team can produce a bit of quality and be well organized.”
Arsenal’s preparations have been boosted by the return to fitness of Jurrien Timber, who Arteta confirmed was fit enough to start in what would be his first game since a 2-0 win in late March. Noni Madueke has also shaken off the knock he suffered at Palace, meaning that Ben White is the only absentee from the squad.
There will certainly be plenty of motivation for Arsenal, who suffered defeat in last season’s semifinal to eventual winners PSG, who they had beaten in the league phase. “We certainly used examples and things that we learned from those three matches, and there’s a lot to take from there,” said Arteta. “It’s true that we have evolved in a different way, they have evolved in a different way, their scenario is different as well, and we took some learnings and some things that we have to do better, and I’m sure that will happen tomorrow.”
Then again, what more motivation could Arsenal need than the pursuit of a first European Cup in their history? Some, including this writer, might argue that having secured a trophy after a six-year wait, and in particular the Premier League title this club has craved since 2004, might ease the demands on the Gunners. Were it put to Arteta he might even have acknowledged that the pressure is a little bit less now that they do not need silverware to vindicate the three previous years of excellent football and near misses.
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When, however, it was suggested that that pressure might be off, Arteta’s response was immediate and assertive. “No. The ambition is bigger. We have one, and now we want the second one.
“That’s all we’ve been talking about. There has to be a platform to reach bigger destinations and to aim for more. The team is capable, because we’ve shown it in the last two seasons, in this competition. What we’ve done this season in the competition, and I want the players to be so confident that we’re going to win.”
That view was shared by Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard, whose first trophy lift has him eager for more. “It’s something special that we can achieve as that has not been done before,” he said. “It was 22 years since we last won the Premier League. Now, finally, we did it. We want to make even more history. When you get the taste of winning and lifting a trophy, you know how nice it feels. Obviously, we want to do it again.
“That pressure, the outside noise of people saying we can’t do it and all that, that’s gone. For us, it doesn’t change a lot other than it’s an amazing feeling and an amazing achievement. But the mindset is still the same. We want to come here and win tomorrow.”
Win or lose, the Arsenal squad can expect a hero’s welcome when they return from Budapest. Up to a million people are expected to line the streets of north London as Arteta’s squad join Renee Slegers’ Champions Cup-winning women’s side in an open-top bus parade. That phrase might be underselling what is being talked about as one of the events of the summer in the capital, something Saka is eager to experience, ideally with one more trophy to show off.
“Personally, I know exactly what it means to the fans,” he said. “I’ve been here on this journey, loving this club and session the ups and the downs. We felt it, you know. When we won the Premier League, we could see how much it meant to the supporters.
“The parade is maybe going to be the first time we see a proper gathering of all the Arsenal fans, and we’re very excited. At the same time, we’re trying to stay focused on this game because we’re so excited, so motivated to do something special and make the padre even crazier. This game is our focus, but then after we’re going to enjoy it.”
