Only nine teams have completed an unbeaten Champions League campaign and Arsenal are now one match away from joining that group.
Standing in their way are PSG, the reigning champions and the first holders to reach the final since Real Madrid in 2016/17 and 2017/18.
The final at the Puskás Aréna brings back last season’s semi-final meeting, when Luis Enrique’s side won both legs to eliminate Arsenal 3-1 on aggregate before going on to beat Inter 5-0 in the final to lift the trophy for the first time.
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Across five meetings in the competition, those remain PSG’s only wins, and Arsenal won in the league phase last season, while the sides drew twice in 2016/17.
Contrasting paths to final
Arsenal’s campaign has been built on structure and control as Mikel Arteta’s side kept nine clean sheets and conceded just four goals in the league phase.
Wins over Atleti, Bayern München and Inter set the tone, before tighter knockout ties against Leverkusen, Sporting CP and Atleti again.
PSG have taken a different route, driven by attacking output, and their 44 goals leave them one short of Barcelona’s 1999/2000 record for a single season.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has been central to that output, with 10 goals and 6 assists, 7 of which came in the knockout rounds.
Their knockout run included wins over Chelsea and Liverpool after earlier victories against Atalanta, Leverkusen, Barcelona and Tottenham, and culminated in a semi-final success over Bayern München.
What is at stake
Arsenal’s progress under Mikel Arteta has been steady: quarter-finals in 2023/24, semi-finals in 2024/25, and now a first final since 2005/06. A win would complete an unbeaten European campaign and deliver the club’s first Champions League title.
For PSG, victory would mean a second European crown, back-to-back titles, and further strengthen Luis Enrique’s record at the club.
Possible line-ups
PSG: Safonov; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Willian Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Zaïre-Emery, Vitinha, João Neves; Doué, Dembélé, Kvaratskhelia
Achraf Hakimi (thigh) was the biggest doubt for the holders, having not featured since the semi-final first leg against Bayern, but Luis Enrique said both he and Nuno Mendes were available in Friday’s press conference. Ousmane Dembélé was replaced during the first half of Paris’ final league game, but he said on Friday that he feels “100% ready” to play.
Arsenal: Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Ødegaard; Saka, Gyökeres, Trossard
Noni Madueke came off with a hamstring injury towards the end of Arsenal’s final league game at Crystal Palace, but Mikel Arteta said in Friday’s press conference that he would be fit for the final. Jurriën Timber, out since March with a groin issue, is also available and expected to get the nod over Cristhian Mosquera, but defender Ben White is definitely out after suffering a serious knee injury at West Ham on 10 May.
Form guide
PSG: LWWDDW
Latest: Paris FC 2-1 Paris, 17/05, French Ligue 1
Arsenal: WWWWWD
Latest: Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal, 24/05, English Premier League
Views from the camps
Ousmane Dembélé, Paris forward, “We’re savouring these moments. We’ve got a young group, a great group who want to win trophies.
“We’re hungry to win everything, whether that’s the Champions League, the league or domestic titles. If you want to be at the very top, you have to win these sorts of trophies multiple times.”
Marquinhos, PSG captain: “It’s always important to be motivated. Again this year, we’ve shown that. These are key moments. Once you win it, once you taste that success, you have so much desire to re-experience it. The emotion, the feeling in the dressing room; we’re competitors.”
Luis Enrique, PSG coach: “I’ve loved all the games we’ve played in the competition this season. We have shown, in those eight knockout games particularly, how good a side we are. We needed to suffer in those games, but we showed what sort of side we are. We have to enjoy playing these kinds of games, because you never know when you’re going to experience these sorts of occasions again.”
Martin Ødegaard, Arsenal midfielder: “It’s something special that we can achieve. Twenty-two years since we [previously] won the Premier League, now we want to make more history. When you taste lifting a trophy, you want to do it again. It would mean so much to everyone, so we’re looking forward to the game.”
Bukayo Saka, Arsenal winger: “We’ve had a week to recover and prepare. The game won’t be decided by minutes – it will be decided by moments. Mikel [Arteta] made it clear his mission was to bring the club back to where it belongs. I’m proud we’ve achieved that. It’s been a long journey with some disappointments along the way. But we’ve picked each other up and gone again.”
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal coach: “The preparation has been really, really good, focused [and] positive. We are here because we have earned the right to be here in the manner that we have played and performed in the competition. Tomorrow on that field, we’re going to have to earn the right to go and win the trophy.”
