At a Glance:
- Arsenal lost in heartbreaking fashion to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final
- Alex Ferguson is critical of Arsenal
- Why Arsenal fans should be annoyed about what Ferguson said
Arsenal fell to Paris Saint-Germain in heartbreaking fashion after having the better of the French team for most of the game, eventually losing on penalties.
Arsenal centre-back Gabriel missed the decisive spot-kick as the Gunners missed out on their first ever Champions League trophy with the last kick of the shootout.
Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique complimented his side’s North London opponents for their valiant effort defensively throughout the game, which saw Arsenal hold the lead for a majority of regular time thanks to Kai Havertz opening the affair.
Alex Ferguson says only one side ‘played football’ in personal message to Paris Saint-Germain owner
It was initially reported that Alex Ferguson sent a a message to Paris Saint-Germain owner Nasser al-Khelaifi stating that “Nasser [al-Khelaifi], this is Alex Ferguson. Well done, it was a tough night for you, but you played against a boring team that did nothing but defend. Enjoy your holidays, you deserve it.”
However, a recent update from Ben Jacobs on X clarified that Ferguson did not refer to Arsenal as ‘boring’, instead saying that “You [Paris Saint-Germain] were the team that played football”.
This still does imply that Ferguson was critical of Arsenal, but that the choice of words he used were less harsh than initally thought.
It is not the first time that Arsenal have been criticised for the way that they play, with NBA star Victor Wembanyama saying they would not make the UCL final fun to watch before the event had happened.
Why Arsenal fans should be annoyed about what Alex Ferguson said
While Arsenal had less than a quarter of the overall posession in the game, they did put in a strong tactical showing and held off PSG well, until the deadlock was broken following Ousmane Dembele’s penalty conversion for the Parisians in the second half.
You could argue that Arsenal were unlucky not to win, with the quality of refereeing in the final heavily criticised. This included a corner that was cancelled thanks to the half-time whistle being blown and late-game penalty not given to the Gunners.
Arsenal fans should be angry that a defensive style of play does not constitute a team turning up to a final and ‘playing football’, given that a rigid defensive system can win crucial matches and is arguably a safer way to win a title or trophy compared to all-out attack.
