Paris Saint-Germain defended their Champions League crown by beating Arsenal on penalties after the final in Budapest finished 1-1 after extra-time. Gabriel missed in the shootout, as did Eberechi Eze, and PSG held their nerve to win back-to-back titles.
The night had belonged to Arsenal for a long stretch after Kai Havertz scored on six minutes, but a mistake from Cristhian Mosquera let Ousmane Dembele equalise from the penalty spot and turn the final into a contest that could not be settled in open play. From there, the shootout decided everything, and Achraf Hakimi and Desire Doue both scored for PSG while Nuno Mendes missed, leaving Arsenal to absorb another painful ending in a major final.
For Gabriel, the result carried a sting that did not fit the rest of his performance. He was described as shining for Arsenal even after missing his penalty, a reminder that finals can be shaped by one moment and then judged by everything around it. His miss mattered, but it did not erase the fact that he had stood out in a match Arsenal came within reach of controlling for much of the way.
What PSG leave Budapest with is simple enough: consecutive Champions League titles and the final say in a match that swung from early Arsenal hope to a penalty shootout finish. What Arsenal are left with is the sharper question of how a team that led early, then survived extra-time, still watched the trophy go in the shootout.
