Saka sends Arsenal past Atletico into Champions League final
LONDON: Arsenal reached the Champions League final for the second time in their history with a battling 1-0 home win over Atletico Madrid sealing a 2-1 aggregate victory in the semifinal on Tuesday. Captain Bukayo Saka’s tap-in just before the interval proved decisive for Arsenal to edge a cagey second-leg contest in which the hosts kept a ninth clean sheet in this season’s competition. They will face either holders Paris St. Germain, who knocked them out in last season’s semifinals, or Bayern Munich in the Puskas Arena in Budapest on May 30 — a week after they hope to have sealed their first Premier League title for 22 years. Arsenal’s only previous Champions League final appearance was in 2006 when they lost to Barcelona. Over the balance of the two legs, Arsenal just about shaded Atletico whose dangerous frontline were largely kept in check on a night of tension and then celebration in north London. Saka’s return from injury could not have come at a better time for Arsenal.
