William Saliba said Arsenal will have to “give everything” next Saturday when they face Paris Saint-Germain in Budapest in the Champions League final, the club’s first shot at Europe’s biggest prize in its history. “It would mean a lot,” Saliba added, underlining how the match follows Arsenal’s Premier League title and comes with fresh hunger rather than complacency.
Saliba, who spoke after Arsenal wrapped up the Premier League on the last day with a 3-2 win over Crystal Palace, insisted the squad is far from satisfied. “Now we have started with the Premier League, it is my first one, so I am happy. But I am not full. I want more. And there is a big chance next week in the Champions League, so we have to give everything,” he said. Arsenal sat clear at the top from early October to April and finally sealed the title after three seasons of finishing second; Saliba noted that “for three years we finished second, and it was hard because those first two years we deserved to win the Premier League.”
The scale of what is at stake was clear in the details of the run-in: Arsenal held onto a 3-2 win on the final day despite late drama and an apparent hamstring problem to Noni Madueke, who was replaced by Viktor Gyokeres and was seen clutching his left hamstring as he left the field. Manager Mikel Arteta, speaking on Thursday afternoon about the moment of becoming champions of England, said simply: “It’s one of the best feelings I've ever had.” Arteta also described the oddity of watching the decisive match from away: "I was supposed to be here, at Sobha, watching the game with the boys and the staff, because that’s what they wanted, but I couldn’t. I think 20 minutes later, before the game, I had to leave."
Context sharpens the significance. Arsenal have never won the Champions League, and the tie in Budapest gives them a historic chance against PSG, who are the holders and who beat Bayern Munich 6-5 on aggregate in the semi-finals. Saliba warned how dangerous the opposition are: “They were scary last year, and they're still scary this year.” He insisted Arsenal will not shrink from the challenge: “We have the best defence this season. We know that if we want to beat them, we have to be 100%." He even framed the matchup as a duel between strengths: "And when you are the best, you want to play the best so we are so happy to have attackers like this to play against us next Saturday and I hope we will win that battle."
The tension is immediate. Arsenal can claim the season’s domestic prize and yet face a holder whose attack remains a European benchmark; Saliba’s praise for Arsenal’s defence collides with his warning that PSG remain “scary.” Arsenal’s final Premier League game underlined that nothing is guaranteed — the 3-2 victory came with a late scare and a visible injury to Madueke, a reminder that margins and fitness will matter in Budapest.
Saliba threaded ambition with caution in a way that framed the final as more than a capstone: "Every game in the Premier League is so hard, even if you play the bottom team," he said, and, having finally broken their run of near-misses, he added, “Finally we won the league and we have to go again next season.” If Arsenal’s words translate into approach, they will travel to the arsenal psg champions league final treating it as a must-win: a single match that can turn a long-awaited domestic triumph into a season that redefines the club’s place in Europe.
