Could Champions League Final Be Arsenal’s Greatest-Ever Night?

BusinessSportsMoneyCould Champions League Final Be Arsenal’s Greatest-Ever Night?ByGraham Ruthven,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I am a soccer writer based in the United KingdomFollow AuthorMay 30, 2026, 04:55am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - MAY 29: Mikel Arteta the Arsenal Manager of Arsenal during the training session/press conference one day ahead of the UEFA Champions League 2026 Final at Puskas Arena on May 29, 2026 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)Arsenal FC via Getty ImagesIt’s been 20 years since Arsenal last appeared in a Champions League final. For Paris Saint-Germain, the experience is a familiar one having beaten Inter Milan in last year’s final to become European champions for the first time, but Mikel Arteta and his players are new to this sort of thing.This isn’t to say the newly crowned Premier League champions can’t get the better of the defending European champions in Budapest. Arsenal has proven itself at the top of the European game by making it this far and could be set up to frustrate and ultimately overcome PSG.Arsenal goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga (left), William Saliba (centre) and Gabriel celebrate with their winners medals after the Premier League match at Selhurst Park, London. Picture date: Sunday May 24, 2026. (Photo by John Walton/PA Images via Getty Images)PA Images via Getty ImagesArsenal boasts the best defensive record in this season’s Champions League. It has kept nine clean sheets in the competition, more than any other team. In Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba, the Gunners possess the strongest centre-back pairing in the Premier League, and possibly in all of European soccer.PSG is an attacking force. Its frontline is fearsome, as Bayern Munich discovered to its cost in the semi-finals when the French giants scored six times ov...