Arsenal’s bid to win the Champions League for the first time is over after they suffered a 2-1 second-leg defeat to Paris St Germain at the Parc des Princes.
PSG have now beaten three Premier League sides in a row, with Arsenal following Liverpool and Aston Villa in succumbing to the French champions, that will play Inter Milan in the final on May 31 after a 3-1 aggregate success.
It was a relentless start from the visitors and PSG with star man Ousmane Dembele only fit enough for the bench – barely got a touch of the ball inside the first 15 minutes.
But they produced a warning sign when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s stunning curling strike beat a diving Raya and bounced off the Spaniard’s left post.
Arsenal’s fine start unravelled when Rice upended Kvaratskhelia. Partey’s header from Vitinha’s ensuing set-piece only fell to Ruiz, who took one touch with his chest to clear Martinelli before unleashing a fine strike that nicked William Saliba’s stomach on the way past Raya.
The hosts came close to killing the tie when Myles Lewis-Skelly gave the ball away with Kvaratskhelia finding Bradley Barcola in space.
Barcola cut back on his left foot but Rice’s sliding tackle took the sting out of his shot and Raya saved well.
Rice called for a magic moment on the eve of Wednesday’s fixture and Saka nearly provided it shortly after the hour-mark when he forced a fingertip save from Donnarumma with the ball heading into the top corner.
PSG were then awarded a penalty after Hakimi’s shot nicked off Lewis-Skelly’s hand and referee Felix Zwayer was eventually called over to his monitor. He wasted no time in awarding a spot-kick which seemed harsh on the visiting side.
Vitinha stepped up to take it, but Raya was equal to the test.
However, the killer blow came three minutes later. Partey failed to clear his lines and Raya could do nothing to prevent Hakimi’s shot from nestling into the bottom corner.
A lifeline or sorts arrived for Arsenal when substitute Leandro Trossard chased down a lost cause and, after Marquinhos fell to the turf, played in Saka who rounded Donnarumma to score.
With 10 minutes to go, Riccardo Calafiori’s pass found Saka unmarked and with an open goal ahead of him, but he blazed over as Arsenal’s sole hope of silverware this season disappeared.
