The vast prices being paid for black-market tickets here seemed an adequate reflection of the levels to which expectation has soared ahead of this evening's game at the Stade de France.
Then, on Monday night, a meeting of the local St Denis council was interrupted by masked men wielding guns who pointed one at the mayor's head and demanded match tickets.
It seems municipal officials knew there were some in a nearby office, but maybe they reckoned they would be harder to replace than the guy with the ceremonial chain round his neck because they decided against handing them over. Fortunately, the raiders admitted defeat and left empty-handed.
With the way this game is being talked up, however, it's conceivable they reckoned it was worth the risk.
Few football matches have been as keenly anticipated as tonight's, and surely no European Cup decider has generated so much excitement since 1991, when Red Star Belgrade took on Marseille. On that occasion, it's worth remembering, the sides played out a goalless stinker that was decided in the Yugoslavs' favour by penalties.
But the competition's 50th birthday is almost certain to be marked by a better game, and all the ingredients appear to be there for a classic. Both teams are overseen by progressive coaches who cherish their reputations for producing creative and attractive teams. Both possess players capable of match-winning genius, and their weaknesses are few.
Despite the customary denials, the Catalans start as favourites, a status they have earned due to the mixture of flair and ferocity their attacking unit has produced both in the Spanish league and on the way to Paris.
If Ronaldinho is left unchecked, he could make the night his own; but Barcelona are far from being a one-man show.
Samuel Eto'o has shown himself to be the best finisher in what is the Continent's best league, while Ludovic Giuly has the pace and guile to trouble the most capable defence, as he showed against Milan in the semi-finals when he scored the decisive goal.
Behind them, Deco's industry and pinpoint distribution can be a persistent source of problems for opponents too.
In the two games against Milan, though, Frank Rijkaard's team reminded us that they can defend too. Carles Puyol may have been fortunate when his slip was mistakenly taken to have been the result of a push by Andriy Shevchenko in the second leg - a decision that led to what should have been the equaliser by the Ukrainian being disallowed - but the Spaniards were otherwise impressive at the back. And 24-year-old Victor Valdes has continued to enhance his reputation with consistently strong showings in goal.
At left back, Giovanni van Brockhurst remains a concern and his limitations will be appreciated only too well by his team-mates, while on the other side Oleguer Presas is likely to be preferred to Juliano Belletti for a role which could prove of crucial importance to the team's attempt to limit the influence of Thierry Henry.
The Frenchman has scaled new heights for the London club this season, but it is still the emergence of the team's back four as the competition's best defence that has been the most notable factor in Arsenal's progression to this, the club's first Champions League final. The Londoners have not conceded a goal since their first meeting with Ajax in the group stages, and the 10 clean sheets - two each against Real Madrid and Juventus - support Arsene Wenger's claim that the team is capable of frustrating Barcelona this evening.
"Of course we are happy that Ronaldinho will play against us," he observed as, not far away, the Brazilian dazzled watching reporters and a handful of ball-boys with his repertoire of free-kicks during a training session at the stadium. "Every great team has potential match-winners and he is a joy to watch. But we have a strong defence which we rely on, because it gives us the freedom to exploit every opportunity. We are confident that it can provide the basis for another win in this game."
It is a measure of his progress over the past two seasons that the likely loss of the injured Phillippe Senderos and his replacement with Sol Campbell will be seen as a setback, but the former Spurs captain seems to have recovered from his mid-season crisis. He would surely love to put a difficult time behind him with a big performance on the greatest of stages.
Around him, the majority of his team-mates have nothing at all to prove, and with qualification for next year's competition already assured at least some of the pressure to win is off.
"This team is the beginning of a new era for Arsenal and its development is ahead of schedule," observed Wenger. "We started the season poorly and at one point it seemed that the self-belief of the team was diminished, but we have peaked at the right time, something we hope to show again tomorrow."
Asked about the venue, Wenger said he was delighted it is taking place in Paris. "I will have a lot of family and friends at the game, it's wonderful. The only downside," he added, "is that everybody keeps asking for tickets, and there are none."
The Frenchman's movements on Monday night around nine are presumably accounted for.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
BARCELONA: Valdes; Oleguer, Marquez, Puyol, Van Bronckhorst; Iniesta, Edmilson, Deco; Giuly, Eto'o, Ronaldinho.
ARSENAL: Lehmann; Eboue, Toure, Campbell, Cole; Silva; Hleb, Fabregas, Ljunberg, Reyes; Henry.
Arsenal v Barcelona. Stade de France, Kick-off: 7.45, On TV: RTÉ 2, UTV, Sky Sports 1
