Psg Captain Marquinhos Warns Arsenal Set-Piece Threat Before Final
PSG captain Marquinhos told his teammates to be ready for Arsenal’s set-piece threat before the Champions League final in Budapest. He spoke on the eve of the match at the Puskas Arena, where PSG will try to add another title after winning the competition once.
Marquinhos at Puskas Arena
Marquinhos made his point during official pre-match media duties alongside Ousmane Dembele. He said PSG want to feel the title moment again and insisted the squad must stay hungry and motivated.
“Once you’ve won the Champions League, once you’ve tasted that title, you want to experience that kind of moment again.”
He added that the memory of the dressing room after the final still stays with him. “I still remember the emotion in the dressing room after the final. We have to be hungry, we have to have to be motivated. We’ve seen fans making the trip by car. In fact, even my father is doing so with some friends. People are coming from far away to motivate us, so our ambition this year is the same, perhaps even bigger.”
Arsenal's set-piece edge
Marquinhos singled out Arsenal’s strengths and said PSG cannot be caught out by the details. “We’ve played them a few times over the last few years, and we know what their strengths are. We know how difficult it is to face this Arsenal team. We can’t know what will happen during the match, and what could be the deciding moment. We need to be ready for anything.”
The warning comes with Arsenal’s record in Europe carrying real weight. They have conceded just six goals in 14 continental fixtures, while PSG have scored 44 goals in their European campaign. Arsenal are also chasing their first Champions League trophy.
PSG and Arsenal history
This final is the first-ever major European final between English and French clubs, and it arrives as the eighth meeting between PSG and Arsenal across all competitions. That makes the matchup unusually familiar for two teams meeting on the biggest stage.
Marquinhos said PSG will not change their routine before kickoff. “Last season’s approach was to try and manage everything that’s going on around the match, everything concerning the pressure. We’re not going to change anything, we’re going to keep working as we’ve been doing until now and keep the motivation that we had last year.”
He also said the final will turn on details, and he pointed to the way PSG handled difficult moments against Liverpool, Chelsea and Bayern Munich earlier in the season. Against Arsenal, the same margin for error shrinks even further, with set pieces likely to sit near the top of PSG’s checklist at the Puskas Arena.
