As it had done for Arsenal in the first leg, the breakthrough came just before half-time and once again Viktor Gyokeres was involved. The Swede made a lung-busting run in behind the Atletico defence, with his cross picking out Leandro Trossard, whose effort was parried into Saka’s path by goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Saka, clearly unhappy to have been pulled for post-match interview duties, said: “You’re taking me away from the celebrations man, it’s so beautiful.” True to form though, Saka was responding with a smile on his face and stuck around to complete the interview with Clarke.
He continued: “Yes, we’re so happy. Easier said than done. This game was a high-pressure game. It means a lot to both sides. We managed to manage it well, and take ourselves to the final. It started before the game when we were arriving on the coach. I have never seen anything like it.
“Sometimes it bounces for you, and sometimes it doesn’t, but you have to be there, and I was there – I got my goal There is no way you are going to come to this position and not have pressure. How can you not expect people to talk about you and criticise you? That’s why we have got to block it out. It is a beautiful story and I hope it ends well in Budapest.”
The last time Arsenal contested a Champions League final in 2006, Saka was a mere five years old. The superstar was named in Arteta’s first-ever starting XI as a Gunners boss, and will no doubt be crucial to any hopes the north Londoners have of being crowned European champions.
As will Declan Rice, who after the celebrations inside the Emirates Stadium had died down, spoke to the Amazon Prime pundits. He said: “It is chaos [in the dressing room]. I don’t think you can underestimate what we have done in this competition up to this point. I think we have every right to celebrate that moment. The most prestigious competition in club football. We are just trying to soak it all in.
“We knew coming into the game what was at stake. If you can’t get up for that, then you can’t get up for any game of football. When we went 1-0 up, I knew we were going to win. I could feel something special building.”