Raya was ‘broken inside’ after Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

David Raya says Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain left him “broken inside”, admitting he may never get another chance to lift the trophy.

Raya won the Premier League Golden Glove for a third successive season as the Gunners ended their 22-year wait to become champions of England in 2025-26.

Mikel Arteta’s team also had the opportunity to become champions of Europe, with only Manchester United (in 1998-99 and 2007-08) and Manchester City (in 2022-23) previously winning both titles in a single season in the Premier League era.

However, Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhaes fluffed their lines from the penalty spot as Arsenal, who had led PSG 1-0 in regulation time before being pegged back in a 1-1 draw, suffered a heartbreaking shoot-out defeat.

And Raya admits that loss left him devastated, though he finally brought himself to congratulate PSG’s Fabian Ruiz when they linked up for Spain’s World Cup campaign. 

“I arrived a bit before Fabian. I was saying hello to some of the others in the reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did,” Raya told The Guardian.

“I couldn’t really talk after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting. I was happy that he could lift the trophy for a second time.

“The thing is, when you lose a Champions League final, when you get there for the first time in 20 years and then you lose on penalties, it destroys you inside.  

“I left there with my head held high because of the work we had done all year, but I was broken inside because we were so, so, so, so close.

“You don’t know when you’ll play another one or even if you will play another one.”

1 – Gabriel Magalhães is the first player to hit a penalty over the crossbar in a #UCLfinal penalty shootout since Milan’s Serginho in 2005 (v Liverpool).

It was the first penalty the Brazilian had ever taken for Arsenal.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 30, 2026

Arsenal have played more European Cup or Champions League games without ever lifting the trophy than any other club in the competition’s history, with 226.

They did, however, enjoy a parade to celebrate their Premier League title win the day after their loss to PSG, which lifted Raya’s spirits. 

“When I went home, I was broken. We stayed overnight [in Budapest] and travelled the next morning. That night is very, very hard. The following morning too,” he added. 

“Then you reach the Emirates, you see the fans and that lifts you. When you come out on the bus with the Premier League trophy and see all the people, what it means to them, you realise what you’ve done.

“Personally, those were very, very hard moments, but you take a step back and look at it with perspective. You think about the way the club was a few years ago and the way it is now, and that gets a smile out of you. 

“That’s when you think next year we can do better and win the Champions League.”

Arsenal’s 2026-27 Premier League fixtures were announced on Friday, and they host promoted side Coventry City on matchday one, with matches against Aston Villa, Chelsea, Sunderland and Brighton also to come before the first international break.

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