Gabriel Magalhaes has opened up on the “painful” experience of missing the decisive penalty in Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.
The Brazilian defender saw his effort fly over the bar in Budapest, handing the French giants their second consecutive European crown.
Despite the personal heartbreak, the center back remains defiant and proud of the Gunners’ historic season.
Shootout Drama Ruins Double Dream
Mikel Arteta’s side entered the final as newly crowned Premier League champions, and they got off to a dream start when Kai Havertz found the net after just six minutes.
However, PSG clawed their way back when Ousmane Dembélé converted from the spot in the second half.
The stalemate led to the lottery of penalties, where David Raya’s save from Nuno Mendes was canceled out by Eberechi Eze’s wide effort. The pressure fell on Gabriel for the fifth kick, but his wayward strike flew over the crossbar, sparking wild celebrations for Luis Enrique’s men.
Gabriel Sends Message To Arsenal Faithful
Taking to social media to address the Gunners support, Gabriel expressed his deep disappointment but insisted he remains immensely proud of a campaign that saw the club end a 22-year drought to secure the Premier League title.
“It’s painful, but I’m proud of this team and everything we achieved together this season,’ the defender wrote on Instagram.
‘Thank you to our incredible fans for your support every step of the way. You deserve to celebrate this journey with us and enjoy the parade today! See you next season!!! Love, Big Gabi.”
Arteta Defends The Defender’s Courage
Despite the criticism from some sections of the fanbase, Arteta was quick to explain the reasoning behind the shootout order.
The Arsenal manager revealed that Gabriel volunteered to take number five honestly after the club’s primary specialists had already been substituted or were unavailable following a grueling 120 minutes of action.
“He (Gabriel) wanted to take number five honestly. We have prepared and trained for this moment,” Arteta explained. “Normally the penalty takers would be Bukayo [Saka], Martin [Odegaard], Kai [Havertz] for sure. We knew that if we got extra time on penalties, the penalty takers would be different players, still with the quality when you see Ebz [Eberechi Eze] take penalties in training, he doesn’t miss any, but then you have to do in this moment.
It’s unfortunate not to have the same precision and efficiency that they had and that’s the reason that we haven’t won.”
London Turns Red For Title Parade
There was little time for the Arsenal squad to dwell on the Budapest disappointment, as the club’s Premier League title parade took place earlier today.
Thousands of supporters descended on north London to celebrate the club’s first domestic league triumph in over two decades, causing significant travel disruptions across the capital.
Despite the European silver medal, the mood in Islington remained celebratory as Arteta led his squad on the 5.6-mile victory route.
2026 FIFA World Cup: How To Watch
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will run from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread across three countries, the tournament will culminate with the final on July 19 at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. All 104 tournament matches will air live across FOX (70) and FS1 (34) with every match streaming live and on-demand within both the FOX One and the FOX Sports app. A record 40 matches, more than one-third of the tournament, will air in prime time across FOX (21) and FS1 (19).
The opening match on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa (3 p.m. ET) will stream for free on Tubi, as well as the USA’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 (9 p.m. ET).
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