Arsenal defeated Atletico Madrid 1-0 and reached the Champions League final again after 20 years!
On social media, Saka, the hero of the goal, posted a photo in which he pointed forward. When the final whistle sounded, he looked up at the sky for a while, and his mood could not be calmed down for a long time.
For Saka, this game scored the 81st goal of his Gunners career. Firstly, this is a goal of great significance. Secondly, it is also a significant milestone. In Arteta's first game as Arsenal manager in 2019, Saka was in the lineup. After many years of time, he became a contributor to helping Arteta realize his dream. He himself claimed that "this can be regarded as a wonderful journey."
Rice, who is in a key position in the midfield, understands what Arsenal fans have experienced in the past. "I know that these new generations of Arsenal fans, especially those who have always supported the team since its inception, have experienced countless ups and downs. This victory is of great significance to them."
Arsenal has adopted a strategy of fighting on multiple fronts this season, competing for the championship on multiple fronts, and "no one can be missing", which has been criticized by many. After working hard on all fronts, they entered the League Cup final, but lost to Manchester City and missed the championship; they did not give up easily in the FA Cup until they were eliminated; the league lost a 9-point advantage and fell into a stalemate again; the Champions League was also exhausted, and they may face stronger Paris or Bayern in the final. Will all these efforts be in vain?
However, Arteta holds an unwavering conviction that as long as there is the possibility of participating in the championship, he will not give it up. The reason is that such an opportunity itself is of value. "Ultimate success obviously brings joy and happiness. Some days will be very difficult because failure will cause countless people to feel disappointed. However, having the opportunity to make fans happy is too wonderful to be replaced by anything else. This is also the value of this profession we are engaged in."
The moment the final whistle blew, I first thought of my wife, then my children, then my parents and sister, and every staff member of the club. I fully understand the meaning of this moment. When you personally witness the excitement on people's faces and see the joy and pride shown by the fans, you will truly understand the value of our job, and this is also the reason why we continue to persevere.
If we talk about a generation of gun fans becoming a generation every 20 years, then stretching the time span to 20 years, in another journey, gun fans have been looking forward to the end for too long.
As of now, exactly 20 years have passed, and the last time Arsenal reached the Champions League final was in the 2005-06 season.
That was the Gunners lineup that Arsenal fans will most miss for a generation. It was a lineup with peak attributes. Henry, Bergkamp, Campbell, Ashley Cole, Cesc Fabregas, Pires, Ljungberg… In the 2006 Champions League final, the Gunners were in a difficult situation. They were sent off in the 18th minute. Even so, they took the lead and held on until the 81st minute before Barcelona overtook the score, leaving an unforgettable regret.
That peak Arsenal was also the starting point that the other side had been waiting for for a long time.
In the season from 2003 to 2004, the Arsenal team won the Premier League championship with an undefeated streak. 22 years later, the Gunners are still working hard for the league trophy. From the beginning of this season to now, the Gunners are closer than ever to being able to touch the Premier League trophy. Now they have played one more game and are 5 points ahead of Manchester City. As long as they win all the remaining three rounds (the opponents are West Ham, Burnley, and Crystal Palace), they can stop this 22-year wait.
Time flashed by 20 years ago. During that period, the focus of the Premier League was another group of influential figures. In 2006, 16 years ago, Mourinho's tough-minded Chelsea won the league title and successfully defended it, closely followed by Manchester United led by Ferguson and Liverpool coached by Benitez. Arsenal is ranked fourth in the overall ranking of the Premier League. The expression "fourth" with a specific meaning will not disappear with them for a long time to come. Speaking of Manchester City, at that time it was just a team trying not to be relegated in the Premier League. Sun Jihai, a player from China, was still playing the main role in the team at that time.
Going back to 20 years ago, among the current protagonists, most of those who have attracted much attention have not yet emerged and are still far away from the center of the stage. During this period, Arteta, as the coach of the team at that time, was still a prolific player and held a key position in the midfield of Everton in the Premier League. Time passed, and five years later, he joined Arsenal as a player, and his indissoluble bond with the Gunners team began.
20 years ago, most of Arsenal's current players were still children. Saka, who scored the goal, was only 5 years old at the time, Rice had just started attending KS1 primary school, Trossard was in Belgium, and Raya was in Spain. They had just started football training. The only one who entered the professional youth training was Kepa, who had been training in the youth training camp of Elba, the second division B team at the time.
Looking at the world 20 years ago, there seems to be a difference between the world then and now. However, if you look carefully, you can't escape the cycle of a certain periodic law.
In 2006, Hamas came to power in Palestine. At this time, Netanyahu, as the leader of the Israeli opposition party, was in the stage of competing for power. A new round of conflict broke out between Palestine and Israel. At the same time, Israel sent troops to invade Lebanon. In 2006, Sino-Japanese relations showed a warming trend. Shinzo Abe succeeded Junichiro Koizumi as Prime Minister. His first overseas trip after taking office was China. This visit was hailed as an ice-breaking trip, which broke the five-year deadlock and put Sino-Japanese relations on the track of normal development…
Perhaps history is just like football, always in a cyclical state according to some regular cycle that is not known to everyone. 20 years is a peak stage. This may be Arsenal's cycle. After such a long wait, I wonder if it is the Gunners' turn to enjoy the limelight? How many 20 years can there be in life? If you work hard for your own goals, what's wrong with waiting for 20 years?
Seeing Arsenal once again reach the Champions League final, Henry was very excited. He said: "You have to calm down and think carefully about the results achieved by this current Arsenal team. Everyone will still talk about the undefeated championship in 2004, but this team has remained undefeated in the Champions League so far. This is also an achievement on another level."
The tough battles are still waiting for them to go through, but they have already gained the respect of all those who love football. As a fan, I can’t help but feel tears in my eyes when I see the club I support demonstrating the spirit of North London with such grace and tenacity.
Arsenal defeated Atletico Madrid 1-0 and reached the Champions League final again after 20 years!
Saka, the hero of the goal, posted a photo of his finger on social media. When the final whistle sounded, he looked up to the sky and could not calm down for a long time.
For Saka, scoring the 81st goal of his Gunners career in this game is not only an important goal, but also a meaningful milestone. In Arteta's first game as Arsenal coach in 2019, Saka was in the lineup. After many years, he became the hero who helped Arteta realize his dream. He himself said, "This is a beautiful journey."
Midfield pillar Rice knows what Arsenal fans have been through. "I know this generation of Arsenal fans, especially those who have supported the team from the beginning, have been through a lot of ups and downs and this win means a lot to them."
Fighting on multiple fronts and competing for the championship on multiple fronts, Arsenal's strategy of "no one can be missing" this season has been criticized for a time. All fronts spared no effort to fight. They reached the final of the League Cup, but lost to Manchester City and lost the championship; the FA Cup did not give up easily until they were eliminated; the league lost a 9-point advantage and fell into a stalemate again, and the Champions League was exhausted. The final may have to face the more powerful Paris or Bayern. Will all these efforts be in vain in the end?
But Arteta firmly believes that as long as there is a chance to compete for the championship, he will not give up any chance, because this opportunity itself is the meaning. "The final victory will naturally bring joy and happiness. Some days will be very painful, because defeat will make countless people feel disappointed, but the opportunity to make fans happy is extremely beautiful and irreplaceable. This is the meaning of our profession."
"When the final whistle blew, my first thoughts were for my wife, children, parents and sister, as well as all the staff of the club. I know the significance of this moment. When you see the excitement on people's faces and the joy and pride of the fans, you will truly understand the value of our job, which is why we persist."
If we say that one generation of gun fans occurs every 20 years, then if we extend the time span to 20 years, during the other journey, gun fans have been looking forward to the end point for too long.
The last time Arsenal reached the Champions League final was in the 2005-06 season. A full 20 years have passed.
That was the generation of Gunners lineup that Arsenal fans miss the most and had the most peak attributes. Henry, Bergkamp, Campbell, Ashley Cole, Cesc Fabregas, Pires, Ljungberg… In the 2006 Champions League final, the Gunners were in a difficult situation when one man was sent off in the 18th minute. They once took the lead and held on until the 81st minute before Barcelona overtook the score, leaving an unforgettable regret.
That peak Arsenal was also the starting point that the other side had been waiting for for a long time.
In the 2003-04 season, that Arsenal team won the Premier League championship with an unbeaten record. 22 years later, the Gunners are still fighting for the league trophy. So far this season, the Gunners are closer than ever to winning the Premier League trophy. Now they are 5 points ahead of Manchester City with one game in hand. They only need to win the remaining three rounds (West Ham, Burnley, Crystal Palace) to end this 22-year wait.
Flash back 20 years, and the protagonists of the Premier League at that time were another group of big guys. In 2006, Mourinho's iron-blooded Chelsea defended the league title, followed closely by Ferguson's Manchester United and Benitez's Liverpool. Arsenal is ranked fourth in the Premier League, and the "fourth" joke will be with them for a long time to come. As for Manchester City, it was just a Premier League relegation team at that time, and Chinese player Sun Jihai was still playing the main role in the team.
Twenty years ago, most of today's protagonists had not yet taken center stage. At that time, head coach Arteta was still playing football and was still the core midfielder of Everton in the Premier League. It would be 5 years later that he would join Arsenal as a player and begin his relationship with the Gunners.
Twenty years ago, most of Arsenal's current players were still children. Saka, who scored the goal, is 5 years old, Rice has just entered KS1 primary school, Trossard and Raya are in Belgium and Spain, and have just started to receive football training. The only one who entered the professional youth training was Kepa, who had been training in the youth training camp of Elba, the second division B team at the time.
Looking at the world 20 years ago, it seems different from today, but if you look closely, you can't escape the cycle of a certain periodic law.
In 2006, Hamas came to power in Palestine, and Netanyahu, as the leader of the Israeli opposition, was vying for power. A new round of conflict broke out between Palestine and Israel, and Israel simultaneously sent troops to invade Lebanon. In 2006, Sino-Japanese relations recovered, and Shinzo Abe succeeded Junichiro Koizumi as prime minister. His first overseas trip after taking office was to China, which was hailed as an ice-breaking trip. Sino-Japanese relations broke the five-year deadlock and embarked on the track of normal development…
Maybe history is like football, always repeating itself according to some unknown regular cycle. A peak in 20 years, this may be Arsenal's cycle. After waiting for such a long time, is it the Gunners' turn to feel proud? How many 20 years can there be in life? If you work hard to achieve your goals, why not wait 20 years?
Seeing Arsenal return to the Champions League final, Henry the Great was quite excited: "You have to calm down and think carefully about the achievements of this Arsenal team. People will still talk about the undefeated championship in 2004, but this team has remained undefeated in the Champions League so far, which is also an achievement at another level."
"They still have a tough battle to fight but have earned the respect of everyone who loves football. As a fan, it brings tears to my eyes to see my club display the spirit of North London with such grace and resilience."