He could have been left to rue his missed opportunities. Entering the Champions League final in the 83rd minute, a match ultimately won by Paris Saint-Germain against Arsenal in Budapest this Saturday (1-1, 4-3 on penalties), Bradley Barcola found himself with two clear chances to secure victory for the capital club before the decisive penalty shootout.

The 23-year-old forward, having been thwarted by David Raya’s assertive charge in the 85th minute, then squandered a match-winning opportunity deep into second-half stoppage time (90th + 7). After a somewhat erratic dribble, the former Lyon player, unleashed behind the Gunners’ defense, saw his powerful shot from a tight angle sail wide of the target.

Fortunately for PSG, the outcome was positive, as they ultimately prevailed to lift the coveted ‘big-eared trophy’ for the second consecutive year. Barcola, reflecting on his own misses, made light of the situation on his Instagram account later that evening.

“Ma3lich, we won”

Accompanying a photograph of himself alongside Ousmane Dembélé, both holding the trophy, the French international captioned it: “I should have killed the match, but ma3lich (meaning ‘it’s okay’ in Arabic), we won.”

Notably, the winger did not step up to take a penalty during the shootout. This proved unnecessary, as PSG triumphed with only one missed spot-kick from their side, securing another title in Europe’s most prestigious club competition.