Red for Jens Lehmann, two late goals conceded – Arsenal FC can also overcome the trauma of losing the 2006 final in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain.
In the north of London, at least in the red and white part, there has only been one topic in the past few days: Arsenal FC’s championship parade, which was announced for Sunday afternoon. On Wednesday the club also published the official route through the Islington district. At least 500,000 fans are expected for the first championship celebration after a long dry spell of 22 years.
It feels like the Gunners community has been in party mode for almost two weeks since rivals Manchester City dropped the crucial points in the title race. Last Sunday, at the season finale, Mikel Arteta’s team finally received the championship trophy.
During the celebrations and the preparations for the “Champions Parade”, which were well documented on social media, it was almost forgotten that Arsenal had another, not entirely insignificant game coming up on Saturday evening: the final of the Champions League against defending champions Paris Saint-Germain (live ticker from 6 p.m.).
Final defeat against Barca 2006: red for Lehmann
So PSG, the billion-dollar club from the French capital, which brings back bad memories for the “Gunners”: Exactly 20 years ago, Arsenal unfortunately lost the final of Europe’s top prize 2-1 against FC Barcelona in the Stade de France in Paris. Tragic figure back then: goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, who, after less than 20 minutes, caught Barca’s breakthrough striker Samuel Eto’o off his feet on the edge of the penalty area and was sent off the pitch.
Jens Lehmann (r.) after being sent off in the 2006 final
“We were robbed”said Keith Edelman, Arsenal’s then managing director, looking back in the Guardian. Referee Torje Hauge is said to have subsequently apologized to the Arsenal delegation for a possible premature dismissal. According to the Gunners’ version, he could have just as easily decided on an advantage; Ludovic Giuly, who was running along, pushed the loose ball into the net after Lehmann’s foul. Arsenal managed to take the lead despite being outnumbered, but conceded two more goals in the final phase.
Lost final in Paris becomes a trauma for Arsenal
What hardly anyone at the club could have imagined at the time was how long the trauma of the final in Paris would last: in the same year, Arsenal moved from the old Highbury to the new, attractive Emirates Stadium. Many believed that master coach Arsene Wenger’s team, with exceptional players like Thierry Henry and Cesc Fabegas, would also become a major power in Europe.
But the “Gunners” only made it to a European final once again, in 2019 in the Europa League (1:4 against Chelsea). The Premier League championship also remained out of reach for two decades – before Mikel Arteta took over as coach in 2019 and turned the long-disorientated club back into a real title contender.
Arteta played for Arsenal for five years during his playing days from 2011. The Basque has been at the club long enough to understand the great longing for success. The players are still hungry “maximum size”emphasized the coach before the final in Budapest, even after winning the championship title and the end of the suffering: “The players now know what it feels like to hold a trophy in the air. They have the chance to do it again. They don’t talk about anything else”said Arteta. “We want to write the next chapter of the club’s history. The trophy still belongs to PSG, but we are here to take it away from them.”
National player Bukayo Saka, who comes from the club’s own academy, also emphasized: “We can achieve great things”. Saka was already thinking about the championship parade on Sunday, when the team could possibly drive through the city with two trophies: “Then the party should get even wilder.”
