🚨 Mikel Arteta: “I watched all the penalties in the competition in the last 72 hours to understand what is a penalty and what is not…
…that one on Madueke can easily be a penalty”.
🚨🗣️ Thierry Henry: “I don't usually talk about referees, but Arsenal were incredibly unlucky tonight. The penalty incident was clear to me, and the halftime whistle just before a dangerous set-piece was difficult to understand. After that, it felt like every important decision went PSG's way. Arsenal never got the consistency they deserved from the officials. PSG will celebrate the trophy, but the refereeing will be one of the biggest talking points of this final.”
🚨🎙️Wayne Rooney: “Arsenal have been robbed tonight” 🤯
Rooney 🗣️ “I’ll be completely honest, Arsenal were absolutely robbed tonight, there is no other way to put it. You look at that foul on Noni Madueke in the box; it’s a stonewall, 100% clear penalty. How the referee or VAR hasn't given that is beyond me, and it completely changes the dynamic of a Champions League final.
But for me, the moment that truly gave it away the moment you knew exactly what the referee was doing was that halftime whistle. To blow the whistle right as Arsenal are literally standing there about to take a corner? I’ve played this game a long time, and you rarely see that unless there’s a blatant bias. It was shocking, and it set the tone for everything that followed.
In the second half, it became a totally different game, and not because of the football. The referee made absolutely sure that every single 50/50 call, every little nudge, and every major decision went straight to PSG. It completely killed Arsenal’s momentum. But to be fair, I’m not even surprised. We saw the exact same story when they played Bayern Munich earlier in the tournament. The officiating was heavily skewed then, and it’s happened again on the biggest stage.
PSG might be lifting the trophy, but they cannot honestly look at themselves in the mirror and be proud of the way they’ve won this final. To win the biggest prize in club football like that? It leaves a horrible taste. Arsenal deserved so much more tonight.”
Finsbury Park yesterday. The dhol carrying the chants, the whole street in step with it.
Arsenal’s first Premier League title in 22 years, and London did what London does.