Arsenal have been knocked out of the Champions League at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain. The French Champions won the first leg 1-0 and won the second leg 2-1 at The Parc des Princes.
It’s another trophyless season for Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, who have missed out on the opportunity of lifting the club’s first UEFA Champions League trophy. In the first-leg at The Emirates, a fast start from PSG saw them take a 1-0 lead after only four minutes, with Ousmane Dembele scoring the only goal in the first match. Luis Enrique’s side could have won by more but missed opportunities denied them the opportunity to strengthen their aggregate lead.
In this week’s second leg, PSG made sure that they reached the final of the competition, where they will take on Inter Milan. If Paris Saint-Germain win the final in Munich, it will be the first time the club have lifted the Champions League trophy in their history.
The Gunners started quickly and had multiple opportunities in the first five minutes to take a lead on the night, which would have completely changed the context of the game. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma made multiple saves which kept PSG in the lead on aggregate.
After 27 minutes the first goal was scored, as Spanish midfielder Fabián Ruiz rifled home a strike from the edge of the box, to put his side 1-0 on the night and double their advantage on aggregate. His shot took a deflection off William Saliba and wrong-footed goalkeeper David Raya. Luis Enrique’s team soaked up early pressure from Arsenal but took their chance when it fell to them.
In the second-half, Donnarumma made a vital save to deny Bukayo Saka from levelling the match. Miles Lewis-Skelly conceded a penalty due to handball, but Vitinha’s penalty was saved by David Raya, who dived low to the goalkeeper’s left-hand side. Less than three minutes later, right-back Achraf Hakimi doubled his side’s lead on the night and put PSG 3-0 up in the tie.
Four minutes later, Saka scored his deserved and helped bring life into the away side with around 15 minutes left. Another chance fell to Saka, who had a great opportunity to score, but his shot flew high over the goal and a huge chance to bring the tie level, was squandered.
A well drilled Paris Saint-Germain side were able to hold onto the lead and booked their spot in the Champions League final in three weeks time in Munich, against Italian Champions Internazionale.
PSG have been widely regarded as one of the best teams in the competition this campaign, beating teams such as Arsenal, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Manchester City all in the Champions League this season.
Inter reached the final by beating Barcelona 7-6 on aggregate, with both ties being matches that football fans will not forget anytime soon. Simone Inzaghi’s side scored a 99th minute winner in extra-time, as 25-year-old Davide Frattesi found the bottom corner to send the Italian side through to the final.
Inter Milan’s defence has been sublime this season and played a key role in the club’s semi-final matches, as four of their seven goals were scored by defenders. In particular, Denzel Dumfries scored twice and registered three assists over the two legs against Barca.
Yann Sommer has played 13 matches this season in the competition and has kept seven clean sheets, the most of any goalkeeper. In Inter’s opening nine UCL matches, the side managed to keep eight clean sheets.
31 May will see Paris Saint-Germain take on Inter in Munich, to lift the Champions League. Will PSG’s impressive attack be able to break down an extremely strong Inter defence in just over three weeks’ time?
