Mikel Arteta has insisted that Gabriel Magalhaes 'honestly wanted' to take Arsenal's fifth penalty in the Champions League final, responding to criticism from Thierry Henry. The defender's miss handed Paris Saint-Germain the trophy, sparking questions over why a centre-back was entrusted with such a crucial spot-kick.
Regular penalty takers Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard had been substituted, leaving Gabriel to step up. Henry, speaking on CBS Sports, said: 'I always say when you go and take the penalty I will always have respect for you. I don't know why he went... But he didn't hide.'
Arteta revealed in his post-match press conference: 'He wanted to take number five, honestly. We have prepared and trained for this moment. Normally, the penalty takers would be Bukayo, Martin, Kai for sure. We knew that if we got extra time on penalties, the penalty takers would be different players.'
The shootout saw Eberechi Eze also miss, though David Raya saved Nuno Mendes' penalty and Declan Rice levelled at 3-3 before Gabriel's decisive miss. Arteta lamented: 'It's unfortunate not to have the same precision and efficiency that they had and that's the reason that we haven't won.'
Gabriel had been Arsenal's standout performer in the final, keeping PSG at bay after Havertz's early goal. Rice defended his teammates, telling TNT Sports: 'To miss a penalty in a Champions League final, obviously it's not nice. But we love them and we're with them. It happens in football.'
