Marquinhos reveals Gabriel's private message after Champions League final consolation

PSG captain Marquinhos has revealed that Arsenal defender Gabriel privately thanked him for the moment of sportsmanship that drew widespread attention during the Champions League final in Budapest, where PSG defeated Arsenal 4-3 on penalties to retain their title.

Gabriel skied the decisive spot-kick, handing PSG victory, but what followed immediately after caught the eye as much as the miss itself. Rather than joining his celebrating team-mates, Marquinhos sprinted to Gabriel’s side to offer comfort — a gesture rooted in the close bond the two Brazilians have built through years of international football together.

“A day later, I received a message from him thanking me for that moment, for the support, for the hug, and for the words I’d shared with him,” Marquinhos said at a press conference. “I told him it had been my greatest victory that night, and that the reaction it generated was great. My mum came over, proud of what I’d done, along with my wife, family and brothers. It was the best accolade I received that night.”

Marquinhos was perhaps uniquely equipped to empathise with Gabriel’s anguish. The PSG skipper himself missed the penalty that eliminated Brazil from the 2022 World Cup quarter-finals against Croatia, an experience he drew on directly in his words to his club rival.

“I told him that, in my opinion, he was the best centre-back in the world this season,” Marquinhos said. “He simply didn’t deserve to carry that burden because, of course, we all want to score penalties. I told him that nothing about that moment would take away from the wonderful season he’d had and that we were going to need him very much. Those were my words to him, so that he could get over that moment as quickly as possible because we were going to need him very soon here.”

Gabriel, 28, had been one of Arsenal’s most consistent performers throughout the campaign, making the miss all the more painful for the Gunners, who had come agonisingly close to a first Champions League triumph. Eberechi Eze had also missed from the spot for Arsenal during the shootout, but it was Gabriel’s effort that proved the final blow.

Marquinhos acknowledged the need for both players to move on swiftly. “Players have to move on to the next challenge very quickly,” he said. “I can’t keep celebrating forever; we’ve got other things to do, and so does he.”