PSG's Squad Boosts Arsenal's Challenge Ahead of Champions League Final
Paris Saint-Germain have delivered exactly the message Arsenal did not want to hear on the eve of the Champions League final: everyone who matters is coming.
Achraf Hakimi and Ousmane Dembele, both serious doubts in the build-up, have been named in Luis Enrique’s travelling squad for Saturday’s showpiece, clearing the way for the holders to arrive close to full strength.
Hakimi back for another final
Hakimi has not played since pulling up with a hamstring problem in the first leg of the semi-final against Bayern Munich. It looked, for a while, like the kind of injury that ends seasons. Instead, he is back in time for the biggest night of all.
His return carries more than symbolic weight. The Morocco international scored the opener in last season’s final, setting PSG on their way to a ruthless 5-0 dismantling of Inter Milan and a long-awaited European crown. He brings pace, incision and a ruthless streak from full-back that few teams can live with when he is in full flow.
Dembele’s issue came more recently, in the final Ligue 1 game of the season against Paris FC. Another hamstring concern, another anxious wait. His inclusion suggests the medical team are satisfied he can play a part, even if his exact level of sharpness will only be revealed under the lights.
For Enrique, it is a significant boost. For Arsenal, it is another layer of difficulty in a final already loaded with narrative.
Arsenal’s shot at revenge – and a double
Arsenal arrive as newly crowned Premier League champions, the glow of last weekend’s trophy lift still fresh. This is not a side sneaking into a final on momentum alone; it is a team that has spent a season proving it can handle pressure and expectation.
Now comes the chance to turn a memorable campaign into a historic one. Domestic glory banked, European redemption on offer.
Because this is not just any opponent. PSG are the team that ended Arsenal’s run at the semi-final stage last season, winning 3-1 on aggregate and closing the door just as Mikel Arteta’s side dared to look towards the summit. Fabian Ruiz and Hakimi struck in the second leg to kill that dream. Those scars have not fully faded.
This time, Arsenal walk into a final with a different posture: champions of England, not plucky contenders. They will try to stop PSG defending their crown and, in the process, redraw the map of European power.
Kick-off is at 5pm. The stakes are obvious.
Timber’s timely return
If PSG’s news raised the temperature, Arsenal produced a response of their own. Jurrien Timber has been named in the travelling party to Hungary after returning to training this week, offering Arteta an extra defensive option at exactly the right moment.
The Dutch full-back has been sidelined since March with a hamstring injury suffered against Everton, a setback that cost him 14 matches across all competitions. His versatility across the back line and comfort on the ball make him a valuable piece, even if he is unlikely to be thrown straight into the starting XI at this stage.
Still, his presence on the plane hints at a deeper bench and more tactical flexibility if the game turns wild in the closing stages.
“We really play as a team”
Inside the PSG camp, there is no sense of a side satisfied with one European title. Bradley Barcola, preparing for his second straight final, set the tone.
“It’s a great honour to be playing in a second final,” the winger told club media. “We’re going to do everything we can to win it. We’re trying to build as much confidence as possible ahead of this final, and we’re going to work hard to make sure we’re ready.
“I really think it’s our collective strength. The fact that we play together, attack together and defend together. We really play as a team, and that’s our greatest strength right now.”
That “collective strength” has defined PSG’s run. Less chaos, more control. Less reliance on individual brilliance, more emphasis on the unit. Arsenal know first-hand how suffocating that can feel; last year’s semi-final offered a brutal lesson in what happens when PSG find their rhythm.
The champions’ armoury
The confirmed PSG squad underlines the depth at Enrique’s disposal.
In goal, Chevalier, Safonov and Renato Marin give him options and security. At the back, Hakimi, Beraldo, Marquinhos, Zabarnyi, L. Hernandez, Nuno Mendes and Pacho provide a blend of experience, aggression and left-right balance that can morph between back four and back three without losing stability.
Midfield looks typically loaded: Fabian, Vitinha, Mayulu, Dro, Zaire-Emery and Joao Neves form a group capable of dictating tempo, pressing high and smothering transitions. It is the kind of engine room that can turn a final into a game played on PSG’s terms if Arsenal allow them to settle.
Arsenal, though, arrive with their own armoury and the confidence of champions. They have lived with pressure all season and found ways to win when the margins were thin.
Now they face the side that once blocked their path, with the chance to rip up last year’s script in the most unforgiving arena of all.
