Bukayo Saka knows ‘deep down’ who Arsenal want to play in Champions League final

Bukayo Saka confessed he knows ‘deep down’ who Arsenal want to play out of PSG and Bayern Munich after he scored the goal that fired his boyhood club to the Champions League final.

The Gunners advanced to the Budapest showpiece after a narrow 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid at a raucous Emirates Stadium.

A draining, physical contest was ultimately decided by Saka’s predatory finish on the stroke of half-time when he reacted to first to a loose ball after Jan Oblak had made a save to deny Leandro Trossard.

Mikel Arteta’s side spent the majority of the second period keeping their opponents at bay and relied on their defensive solidity to protect the clean sheet that guaranteed their place in the Budapest showpiece.

Arsenal will now wait to find out which European heavyweight they will face in just over three week’s time.

Holders PSG, who knocked Arsenal out in the semi finals last year, or Bayern, spearheaded by Harry Kane, represent daunting opposition and Saka kept his cards close to his chest when asked who he would prefer to face.

‘You can’t ask me that!’ said Saka after CBS pundit Micah Richard’s asked who is preference would be.

‘You know I’ll have to give a media trained answer! You know deep down who we want to face, that’s all I’ll say.’

‘That moment after the game, only myself and a few other people that are close to me will understand what I’ve been through in my career and the journey that I’ve been on to reach this stage,’ Saka added following praise from Clint Dempsey, who remarked on the mature way he handled the fallout of his penalty miss in the Euro 2020 final against Italy.

‘I just wanted to say thank you to God in that moment, because God is what gets me through all of these things. Some players will not recover from certain situations I’ve endured, but he’s been my strength through it.

‘I’m just happy to be here and proud of myself that I can stand here today and still be playing at the highest level and have the opportunity to play in the Champions League final.’

Saka also praised the atmosphere generated by Arsenal fans who have, themselves, faced criticism in recent weeks and been accused of adding to their air of anxiety ahead of must-win Premier League games.

‘We felt it,’ said Saka. ‘Since we were on the coach, I’ve never seen the Emirates like this in my whole career, I’ve played so many games here. It was so special. They pushed us, from the start to the end.”

‘This is probably the biggest game the Emirates has ever hosted I’d say and it was a successful one.

‘All the fans that were here will go home and remember this night forever.