Mikel Arteta has revealed that Gabriel asked to take the decisive fifth penalty in Arsenal's Champions League final shootout defeat to Paris Saint-Germain. The Gunners lost 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw, missing out on their first Champions League title.
Arsenal took an early lead through Kai Havertz inside six minutes, but Cristhian Mosquera's foul on Khvicha Kvaratskhelia allowed Ousmane Dembele to equalise from the spot in the second half. The match went to penalties, where Arsenal were without their usual takers.
Viktor Gyokeres, Gabriel Martinelli and Declan Rice converted their spot-kicks, but Eberechi Eze missed the target. Gabriel then stepped up needing to score to keep Arsenal in the shootout, but his penalty sailed over the bar.
Arteta explained that the usual penalty takers—Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz—were unavailable due to substitutions or injury. He noted that Eze rarely misses in training, but the pressure of the moment proved decisive.
