"We freaked out" - Riccardo Calafiori reveals how Arsenal players nearly called off Premier League title parade

Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori has lifted the lid on how the Gunners nearly thought of not doing the open-top bus parade after winning the Premier League last season. ended the club's 22-year-long wait to win the Premier League last term as they finished seven points ahead of Manchester City.

Arsenal lifted the Premier League trophy on the final day of the season at Selhurst Park after they beat Crystal Palace. The Gunners still had to play Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the final of the Champions League in Budapest, where they lost on penalties.

And the heartbreak of that loss nearly forced the Arsenal players to cancel the Premier League trophy parade. Calafiori revealed that on their way back from Hungary, some of the players didn't really want to do the parade since it was scheduled for the next morning after theChampions League final.

However, when the players realised how many people were waiting for them to do the parade, they changed their minds. Calafiori believes it was the right thing to do because Arsenal had an incredible Premier League campaign, which obviously meant a lot to the fans.

He told the club's official website: "Even the parade. It would have been a little complicated, because it was the morning after losing the Champions League final, and some of us were talking on the plane back from Hungary, saying we really didn't want to do it.

But then when we saw how many people were there, we freaked out! In the end, it was the right thing to do, because it was still an incredible season for us.

You can't let that Champions League final condition you - you have to see the bigger picture, and it was amazing." Calafiori scored for Arsenal to initiate the comeback win they registered against Leeds United last Saturday. Despite securing the three points, the Gunners remain second in the table, three points behind Manchester City, who have won all their league games this season.

Arsenal gear up for Nottingham Forest trip with tough test against Bayern Munich also in sight Arteta's men are gearing up for two tricky tests in the next few days. On Sunday, Arsenal travel to the City Ground, where they face Nottingham Forest.

Notably, the Gunners failed to win the corresponding fixture last season.