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“Back to back” shone in bright lights on Budapest’s historic Keleti railway station, a message celebrating Paris Saint-Germain’s consecutive Champions League triumphs. The projection, featuring the faces of Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, was in English, though perhaps it should have been in French. PSG had done it again — two in a row.

With a different twist of fate in the penalty shootout, those faces could have been Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice instead. But following Arsenal’s narrow defeat in the Champions League final, their images were seen only in the silent corridors beneath the Puskas Arena.

The stadium itself bears the name of Ferenc Puskas, a man who scored four times in a European Cup final — part of a seven-goal display by his team. Arsenal, by contrast, barely managed seven shots all game. Yet it still took penalties to separate them from PSG. “Small margins,” lamented captain Odegaard, who could only watch the shootout after being substituted. “You want to win it so badly, and to end up with nothing is brutal.”

Declan Rice wore the captain’s armband by the end, scored his penalty, and then offered words of both realism and hope. “The overriding emotion is devastation,” he admitted. “But congratulations to PSG. Over the last couple of seasons, they’ve been the best team in Europe.”

It was a telling acknowledgment. Unlike Mikel Arteta, Rice didn’t dwell on Noni Madueke’s rejected penalty appeal after his tussle with Nuno Mendes. PSG have now beaten Arsenal in both of their consecutive title-winning campaigns — 3-1 in the 2025 semi-final and again on penalties in 2026. Arsenal had finished well above them in the league phase each time. But ultimately, they still weren’t Europe’s best.

They are, however, getting closer. “Ever since I came to this club, we’ve been on an upward path,” said Rice. That holds true in Europe too: from quarter-final to semi-final to final — only one step remains, though it is the toughest of all. Arsenal have already made that leap domestically, moving from runners-up to Premier League champions. Replicating that in Europe will be an even greater challenge.

“Winning the Premier League after 22 years was a dream, and reaching this final was also a dream come true, but it wasn’t meant to be,” Rice reflected. “It doesn’t define us. We’ll use this pain to fuel the coming seasons. Talking to the players and the manager, there’s no reason to stop here.”

“We’re gutted, but we move on,” he continued. “So many top players have needed years to win their first Champions League. That’s how it goes. Seeing them lift that trophy — we want that, we want that success.”

Rice can take encouragement from PSG’s own story — a team once branded as nearly men, now back-to-back European champions. Luis Enrique has built a new side, free from the weight of past failures. Great names like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani and Thiago Silva never managed to win the Champions League with PSG, Silva only doing so after leaving.

There are also Premier League examples that offer inspiration. Chelsea overcame years of heartbreak to finally win the Champions League in 2012. Manchester City’s long-awaited triumph came in 2023, achieved by a core who had come close before — though not the earlier generation of Sergio Aguero, David Silva, Vincent Kompany and Fernandinho.

Arteta’s squad has age on its side. Leandro Trossard, at 28, was the only outfield player over that age to feature in Budapest. Few are nearing the end, though there is a case for attacking reinforcement. Arsenal have scored only four goals in five European knockout games this season, and across the last three campaigns, just 12 in 11 matches from the quarter-finals onward.

There is, however, a cautionary tale in history. Some teams have come close but never conquered. Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid and Massimiliano Allegri’s Juventus both reached two finals in three years without winning either, and neither club has returned since. More recently, Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan suffered a similar fate. The manager has moved on, and some players may never get another chance.

Two decades ago, Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal were arguably the best team never to win the Champions League — perhaps one of the greatest sides never to claim Europe’s crown. That team played with more style, but Arteta’s more methodical approach came even closer to finishing the job.

This summer, Declan Rice will look to prove that persistence eventually pays. He’s been part of an England side that has reached two major finals, one decided by penalties. For both Rice and Arsenal, the upward journey could continue — though it’s never guaranteed. At least they’ve reached the Premier League summit. Europe, though, still awaits.