European giants Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona met in a tense quarter-final tie. It was Barcelona’s first Champions League quarter-final since 2020, after beating Napoli 4-2 in the previous round. The Spaniards came into the game unbeaten in 11 games in all competitions. Former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique guided PSG to a straight-forward 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad in the round of 16, who also came into the game on an impressive unbeaten run themselves. The French champions hadn’t lost in 27 matches.
Paris Saint-Germain went into the fixture as favourites, and star-man Kylian Mbappe looked to continue his fine Champions League form. The Frenchman has 6 goals already this campaign, and 39 in all competitions. Despite this, the hosts started the game poorly. They looked sluggish and slow, and Barcelona looked to take advantage. After 37 minutes, they did. An excellent Lamine Yamal cross was palmed away by Gianluigi Donnarumma straight into the path of Raphinha, who fired into an empty net. It was the Brazilians first Champions League goal, and a crucial one for Barcelona. The shock goal was a huge setback for Enrique’s side, who seemed to sense another early European exit. After a poor first period, PSG went into half-time behind, knowing their start to the game could have cost them. The PSG boss knew he had an uphill battle to face, but whatever he said in the changing room must have worked.
The second half was a different story. Just 3 minutes after the restart, it was former Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele who levelled proceedings. The Frenchman picked the ball up just inside the box, before cutting back onto his left foot and blasting a fine effort past Marc-Andre Ter Stegen. It was a fabulous goal and just what PSG needed to get their rhythm back. The evening was then completely flipped on its head another 2 minutes later. Vitinha latched onto a pass from Fabian Ruiz and slipped a low effort into the bottom corner. The tie was now in PSG’s hands and they looked comfortable once they gained the lead. The Parisians nearly extended their lead through Bradley Barcola, but he saw his strike clip the crossbar and sail high and wide. PSG were dominating play, but missed multiple chances to kill the game and extend their lead before the second leg.
Dembele Celebrates Goal Against His Former Side
Noticing that the fixture was slipping out of Barcelona’s grasp, Xavi turned to his substitutes to save the day, a decision which would prove ingenious. Despite being on the pitch for less than a minute, it was substitute Pedri who provided the assist for Barcelona to equalise. In the 62nd minute, the Spaniard lofted a fabulous floated ball into the path of Raphinha, who dispatched with elegance to grab his second of the game. The winger had a fine evening, and added another Champions League goal on a special night. The PSG players and fans were stunned, and momentum suddenly seemed to be swinging in Barcelona’s favour. They continued knocking on the door, before another substitute completed a miraculous Champions League turnaround and scored the winner. In the 77th minute, an Ilkay Gundogan corner was met by Andreas Christensen, who headed into the ground and past Donnarumma. It was two substitutes with their first touches of the game who changed the complexion of the tie. The technical ability of Pedri and the brute force of Christensen was enough to secure a crucial away win for Xavi’s men. The game finished 3-2, PSG ruing their missed chances and slow start to the game, Barcelona proving their resilience and tactical mastery.
The game brought an end to PSG’s 27 game unbeaten run, and they won’t have until the next leg to play again. As for Barcelona, it is a trip to Cadiz in their pursuit of rivals Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.