Luis Enrique Declares PSG ‘Deserving Champions League Finalists’ Following Victory Against Arsenal

Luis Enrique, the coach of Paris Saint-Germain, affirmed that his team earned their spot in the Champions League final and is resolutely focused on claiming the trophy following their semi-final victory against Arsenal on Wednesday.

“Over the course of both matches, we scored more goals than them, which is the most crucial aspect in football. However, Arsenal played exceptionally well, and we had to endure quite a lot,” the Spanish manager remarked after PSG’s 2-1 triumph in the second leg in Paris, clinching a 3-1 aggregate win.

Goals from Fabian Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi either side of half-time put the French champions in a commanding position, though Bukayo Saka responded with a goal for Arsenal, and Vitinha of PSG saw his penalty saved.

Nevertheless, PSG’s goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was called upon to make several critical saves, leading Arsenal’s manager, Mikel Arteta, to declare that he believed his side had performed better across both encounters.

“This has been the most challenging match we’ve faced in the Champions League, but we absolutely deserve our place in the final,” Luis Enrique added.

PSG is set to compete against Inter Milan in the final in Munich on May 31, following an impressive journey in the competition, which has also seen them eliminate other Premier League teams, including Liverpool and Aston Villa.

This achievement is remarkable given their perilous position during the group stage, where they endured a shaky start, losing three out of their first five matches, including a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal.

These results left them in 15th place out of 36 teams, trailing Liverpool by eight points.

“It’s evident throughout this competition that results matter, and while we may have deserved nine more points in the league phase, we always knew it,” Luis Enrique stated.

“Facing such tough fixtures during the league phase contributed to our team’s growth and improvement.

“Statistics indicated we were among the best teams in Europe, and as we became more clinical, it became clear in this short competition that we have earned our place in the final.”

This will mark PSG’s second appearance in a Champions League final, five years after they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in Lisbon.

Last season, in Luis Enrique’s inaugural campaign with PSG, they were eliminated in the semi-finals by Borussia Dortmund.

“Football can be illogical, but from day one, I aimed to work towards making history, and that’s our goal: to be the first to secure this highly coveted trophy,” concluded the former Barcelona manager, who will celebrate his 55th birthday on Thursday.