Arsenal beat Atletico to reach the Champions League final 20 years | Football News

Bukayo Saka scored a 1-0 win for Arsenal as they took their Champions League semifinal 2-1 with Atletico.

Arsenal reached the Champions League final for the first time in 20 years with Bukayo Saka’s 1-0 win against Atletico Madrid.

Mikel Arteta’s side set up a second-half lead with Saka’s late first-half strike at a lively Emirates Stadium on Tuesday.

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The Gunners, who were held to a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Madrid last week, recovered from Saka’s goal to go 2-1 up on aggregate.

Arsenal meet Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich finally in Budapest on May 30.

Hosts PSG, who beat Arsenal in last year’s semifinals, have a 5-4 lead ahead of the second leg in Munich on Wednesday.

It was a difficult night for Arsenal, who returned to the Champions League final for the first time since losing 2-1 to Barcelona in their only game in 2006.

Arsenal have never won the Champions League, with their two major European trophies coming in the 1994 Cup Winners’ Cup and the 1970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.

Their last continental final ended in a 4-1 defeat against Chelsea in the 2019 Europa League.

It is shaping up to be a huge season for Arsenal as they chase the Premier League and Champions League double.

Even Arsene Wenger’s “Invincibles”, who won the last English title in 2004, may bow to the current generation when they finish the job.

Fittingly, it was Saka, the home icon of the Arteta era, who proved Arsenal’s game-winner.

Now just four games from immortality, Premier League leaders Arsenal received a major boost in the title race when second-placed Manchester City faced Everton on Monday.

The Gunners will become champions if they win their last three games against West Ham United, Burnley and Crystal Palace.

Once the title is decided, Arsenal will travel to Hungary with the Champions League crown in their sights.

Arsenal suffered from a lack of mental strength after four wins in six games, in all competitions, brought back painful memories of their failure to end their six-year wait for silverware.

But the labels “almost male” and “serial choker” that were used a few weeks ago are about to be banished forever.

Thousands of Arsenal fans gathered outside the stadium before kick-off to salute their team with torches and flags, a display of passion that showed Arsenal’s desire to make history.

It was a typical north London evening when nothing was possible as Arsenal came close to breaking the shackles of two decades of underachievement.

After a short spell in the Premier League, Saturday’s 3-0 win over Fulham marked Arsenal’s return to form, a statement to critics who say they only win badly.

This was a big show, but no one with an Arsenal relationship was bothered in the least.

Arsenal were almost caught on the counter after a difficult start when Julian Alvarez shot wide and Giuliano Simeone almost headed home with a through ball.

But Arsenal recovered from those worrying moments to give a boost, which led to their goal in the 44th minute.

Viktor Gyokeres’ clever run broke through Atletico’s defence, and his cross found Leandro Trossard inside the area.

Trossard got into enough space for a slow drive when Jan Oblak pushed to Saka, who reacted quicker than his foot markers to slot home from 4 yards (3.7 metres).

Arteta fired into the air in celebration as the Emirates erupted into a sea of ​​red in celebration.

Atletico tried to spoil the party in the second half, but Gabriel Magalhaes made a last-ditch effort with Simeone to deny another goal before David Raya parried Antoine Griezmann’s volley.

Arteta recently revealed that he watched Arsenal win the Champions League, even in the difficult early days of his reign.

The Spaniard is now only one victory away from seeing the dream become a glorious reality.