'He wanted to take it' - Gabriel's first Arsenal penalty ends with heartbreak

Gabriel’s first Arsenal penalty in a Champions League final ended in heartbreak as his miss from the spot saw Paris St-Germain retain their title in a dramatic shootout in Budapest. The towering defender stood alone with his head bowed, hands clasped behind his neck, as PSG’s captain Marquinhos draped a consoling arm around his shoulder. The moment encapsulated the agony of defeat for a club chasing history, their hopes of a historic Premier League and Champions League double dashed by a cruel twist of fate.

The match itself had begun brightly for Arsenal, with Kai Havertz’s early strike sending the Gunners’ supporters into dreamland inside the Puskás Arena. Yet despite dominating possession, the North London side struggled to create clear chances against a resolute PSG defence, with the Brazilian defender Gabriel at the heart of their defensive resoluteness. He made more clearances than any other player on the pitch—13 in total—as Arsenal chased the rare feat of a double, a feat achieved only by Manchester United (1999 and 2008) and Manchester City (2023) since 1992. Their dominance, however, was undone when Ousmane Dembélé levelled from the penalty spot, forcing the game towards a nerve-shredding shootout.

Arsenal had prepared for such a moment, with manager Mikel Arteta revealing that Gabriel had “prepared and trained for this” after the defender volunteered to take the decisive penalty. Normally, the Gunners’ designated spot-kickers—Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard and Kai Havertz—would have stepped forward, but Arteta acknowledged the need for different players to rise when the occasion demanded. When the shootout arrived, Arsenal appeared to gain an early advantage when Eberechi Eze’s effort was saved by David Raya, before the Gunners’ keeper denied Nuno Mendes. Yet after four successful kicks from both sides, Gabriel’s moment arrived—and his shot flew high over the crossbar, sending the delirious PSG players and fans into raptures.

The pain of the miss was compounded by the manner of Arsenal’s defeat, with former defender Matt Upson comparing it to John Terry’s infamous slip in the 2008 final. Midfielder Declan Rice sought to console his teammate, insisting that “everyone has missed a penalty” and that such setbacks were an inevitable part of football. Yet for Gabriel, whose leadership and defensive excellence had defined Arsenal’s season, the memory of that miss will linger far longer than his contributions in the final itself.