Arsenal confirmed their spot in the 2026 UEFA Champions League final with a narrow but deserved 1-0 victory against Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their semifinal at the Emirates on May 5th. Bukayo Saka’s close-range strike on the stroke of half-time was enough to secure progression after a 1-1 draw in the first leg in the Metropolitano. From there, the staunch backline of Gabriel Magalhães and William Saliba shut down what little offence Diego Simeone’s men could muster up and secured a first final appearance in 20 years.
Mikel Arteta’s men will meet Paris Saint-Germain in the final, the team that beat the Gunners in the semifinals last season en route to claiming the famous Big-Eared trophy for the first time in the club’s history. They edged out German giants Bayern Munich in their respective semifinal, winning a 5-4 thriller in the first leg in the Parc des Princes before neutralising the Bavarian attack in the second leg at the Allianz Arena, securing a 1-1 draw and a spot in their second straight final.
Online betting sites make the defending champions the clear favourite heading into the Budapest showpiece. The latest online sports betting odds have PSG positioned as the 4/6 frontrunner to go back-to-back, with Arsenal a 13/10 underdog to claim their maiden Champions League crown. And if the Gunners are to upset the odds and emerge with the trophy, there are several key battlegrounds which their players simply must win in order to leave the Hungarian capital as European champions.
Ben White vs. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
If there’s one battle that Arsenal fans are currently dreading, it’s the thought of PSG’s superstar winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going up against Gunners right back Ben White. The Georgian maestro has been absolutely unstoppable in the Champions League this season, netting ten goals and providing a further six assists in just 12 starts. To make matters even worse, the former Lokomotiv Moscow man has hit peak form at the perfect time, scoring twice against Bayern in the first leg of their semifinal as well as providing a spectacular assist for Ousmane Dembele’s goal in the second leg in Munich.
But that’s not all. Kvara has started just 16 games in Ligue 1 this season, with manager Luis Enrique ensuring that his main man is fully fit and firing for more challenging Champions League ties as opposed to the relative cakewalk that is the French top flight. With plenty of gas left in the tank, White’s task of somehow finding a way to keep the Georgian quiet will by no means be an easy feat.
Declan Rice vs. Vitinha
Declan Rice has been, without question, Arsenal’s player of the season thus far. Despite all the testing times the club has faced in recent weeks, the England midfielder has kept his head high, rallying his teammates both verbally and with his lung-busting displays in the centre of the park. His never-say-die attitude has been crucial to the Gunners regaining the advantage in both the Premier League title race and reaching the Champions League final. That will have to be on full display once again in Budapest.
He will be coming up against Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Vitinha in a battle that will likely decide the fate of the trophy. The two players are completely different types of midfielders. PSG’s man is a classy conductor, orchestrating attacks from deep and allowing midfield partners Fabian Ruiz and Joao Neves to thrive. Rice, meanwhile, is all-action, covering every blade of grass for the full 90 minutes.
He will need to be all over Vitinha like a rash in the final, denying the playmaker any time on the ball whatsoever. If he fails in that task, there is a strong chance that PSG’s midfield will take control of the game, and that could spell bad news for Arsenal fans hoping that the trophy will be heading back to North London.
Viktor Gyökeres vs. Marquinhos & Willian Pacho
In recent weeks, striker Viktor Gyökeres has looked every inch the man that Arsenal paid a mighty £64m to sign from Sporting CP last summer. He has netted three goals in his last three games — including keeping his cool from the penalty spot in the first leg of the semifinal against Atletico — taking his tally to 21 in all competitions this term, becoming the first Gunner to hit that mark since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang six years ago.
But it isn’t his goalscoring exploits that should have Gooners excited ahead of the final. It’s the fact that, in the second leg against Atletico, Gyökeres finally looked like the battering ram-like striker Arsenal paid all that money to sign 12 months ago. The powerhouse Swede went to war with Atleti defenders Robin Le Normand and David Hancko, regularly nullifying the pair of them as he hustled and harried, held the ball up for his teammates, and won free kicks in dangerous positions.
He took on both Atleti defenders at the same time and won. The question now is whether he can do the same thing to the PSG pairing of Marquinhos and Willian Pacho. If he can, that first-ever UCL crown could be North London-bound at long last.