Bukayo Saka was the decisive man of a historic Champions League second-leg semi final clash against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night. Saka could not hide his delight after firing the Gunners to the final with a hard-fought 1-0 victory on 2-1 aggregate.
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The 24-year-old took advantage of a rare mistake from Jan Oblak to net the only goal of the game, sparking wild celebrations at the Emirates Stadium. It was his 81st goal for the club and now stands as his most significant yet.
Reflecting on the strike, Saka said to Prime Video: “It’s definitely up there. In those situations I just try to stay alive and sometimes it bounces for you, sometimes it doesn’t but you have to be there. I was there and it fell for me. I got my goal, so glory to god and we’ll go to the final now.”
Bukayo Saka also attributed the win to the atmosphere in the stadium, noting he had never seen anything like it.
“It started before the game when we were arriving on the coaches, I’ve never seen anything like it. They pushed us, and pushed us, and pushed us. They’ve got their special moment at the end so we’re celebrating it together,” he said.
Arsenal now find themselves in the privileged high position to securing two of the biggest title in European football this seasons. The Gunners enter the final weeks of the campaign as Premier League leaders, following the Manchester City’s dramatic 3-3 draw at Everton. They also stand a chance to winning the Champions League title for the first time in their history.
Questioned about the weight of expectation for Arsenal, Saka said: “In the semi-finals, now we’re in the final of the Champions League. We’re fighting for the Premier League, so how can you not expect people to talk about you and criticise you? We have to block it out and focus on getting the job done. We did that and it’s another step forward.”
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