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Former Manchester City star Micah Richards has applauded Arsenal centre-back Gabriel for \u2018stepping up\u2019 and taking a penalty against PSG in the Champions League final, but believes Noni Madueke should have been given the nod for the critical fifth spot-kick instead.<\/p>\n
The French side made it back-to-back triumphs in Europe\u2019s premier cup competition as they beat the Gunners in a nerve-shredding penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw after extra-time in Budapest.<\/p>\n
While Nuno Mendes was denied by Arsenal<\/strong> stopper David Raya, a stuttering Eberechi Eze struck wide from 12 yards before Gabriel<\/strong> blazed over the crossbar to confirm Arsenal\u2019s fate, as their wait for a first-ever Champions League success continues.<\/p>\n It was a quick turnaround as the north London outfit caught a 2am flight to head back to the capital and celebrate their first Premier League title in more than 20 years with an\u00a0open-top bus parade.<\/p>\n READ: Lineker drops Arsenal claim after \u2018positive for football\u2019 CL final loss; Arteta told to make three signings<\/strong><\/p>\n While the jubilant scenes amongst the fans and players were clear for all to see, they were clearly tinged with regret over what might have been in Hungary.<\/p>\n Questions surrounding Arsenal\u2019s apparent lack of firepower up front have since risen to the surface again, while Thierry Henry was among those to criticise Gabriel\u2019s position in the list of penalty takers on the night.<\/p>\n \u201cI always say when you go and take the penalty I will always have respect for you,\u201d the Arsenal legend said on CBS Sports<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know why he went, I don\u2019t know how he arrived to be the fifth guy but he went. How he played all season and tonight was immense. But he missed it. But he didn\u2019t hide.\u201d<\/p>\n And Henry\u2019s CBS colleague, Richards, took a similar stance as he looked back on Arsenal\u2019s missed opportunity while speaking with Gary Lineker on the latest episode of The Rest Is Football<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen Gabriel stepped up, though\u2026 I don\u2019t want to say he looked nervous because you could probably say that about every player that stepped up, but I was wondering what technique he was going to use,\u201d Richards said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo when you\u2019re a defender and you\u2019re approaching a penalty, defenders union and all that, we just say hit it as hard as you can. That\u2019s what we think.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen he was running up and taking it, he didn\u2019t look confident, you know? It\u2019s almost like he just wanted to get it over and and done with.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t remember who was sat next to me who said, \u201cGabriel\u2019s going to hit this as hard as he possibly can and it\u2019s going to go over the bar\u201d, and that\u2019s exactly what happened as well. You just got a sense and a feeling.<\/p>\n \u201cBut fair play to him for stepping up, he wanted to lead by example, but I would have liked to have seen Madueke take one, a technician.<\/p>\n \u201cI know it\u2019s easy saying that after the event but that\u2019s why you\u2019ve got the players, they have better technique, they play in forward positions because they have better technique.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if you\u2019re nervous your probability is higher if your more technical.\u201d<\/p>\n READ NEXT: Mikel Arteta admission tells you Arsenal will only get more sh*thouse<\/strong><\/p>\n While Richards stressed that he was not trying to \u2018throw Madueke under the bus\u2019, he stressed that a team\u2019s \u2018technical players\u2019 should always be nearer the front of the queue when it comes to the pressure involved in a shootout.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s not me throwing Madueke under the bus,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cI just think if you\u2019ve got technical players on the pitch then you give yourself a better chance, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/div>\nRichards miffed at missed Arsenal opportunity<\/strong><\/h2>\n