It has been 32 years, an eternity, that French football is waiting to win the European Queen competition again, after the final won by Olympique de Marseille in 1993 (1-0), already against a Milanese team (AC Milan), already in Munich and already at the end of the first year of a new competition format.
Since his acquisition by Qatar Sports Investments in 2011, PSG alone has embodied this Homeric quest, to the rhythm of shines so far always punctuated by large disillusions, during the countryside which have especially left it frustrated. This time, the capital’s club put the ingredients to conquer Europe, passing mainly through the English Channel.
After having knocked over Manchester City (4-2) in a match of the first phase to leave or double, after the feat against Liverpool in the knockout stages (qualification for penalty shootout in Anfield), after having driven the ghosts of a rise at its expense against Aston Villa, management of emotions, mental steel and idea of successful games were still the watchwords against Arsenal Semi-final (1-0, 2-1).
“Lots of suffering”
During this double confrontation against the executioner of Real Madrid holding the title, the Parisians always led to the score and never really panicked, even when the Gunners crowded very hard to equalize.
“It was a lot of suffering”nevertheless recognized Luis Enrique at the end of the second round, as attested by the assaults of the Gunners at the start of the game, pushed by a large Gianluigi Donnaruma and finally quickly showered by the sudden and sublime flywheel of the Middle Fabian Ruiz, symbol of the progression of the team since the arrival of the Spanish coach in 2023.
In other times, Vitinha’s failed penalty (69e) might have come to the start of a “comeback”. But PSG did not fall back and even doubled the brand via Achraf Hakimi (72e), before doing the round back after reducing the Bukayo Saka rapid score (76e).
“The job is not over”
In an molten park, PSG took the time to celebrate this second final, after that of 2020 lost to Bayern in an empty stadium in Lisbon, in the middle of the pandemic (1-0), its president Nasser al-Khelaïfi getting a statement- “We showed that we were a big team” – which still requests confirmation.
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His players know it so well that the heads were already in Munich. “The job is not over, we want more, we want to get this title”proclaimed Captain Marquinhos, who has experienced many disillusions since his arrival in Paris in 2013. “The objective is to write history, to be the first to conquer this so desired trophy” At PSG, abounded Luis Enrique. “The club deserves it, supporters have deserved it for a very long time. »»
Parisians have three weeks to prepare for this deadline. A luxury when we think back to the frantic sequence of matches since January. The club is relieved of pressure in Ligue 1, won in April. He went to Montpellier on Saturday, then will receive Auxerre on May 17, without any stake. He will play the Coupe de France final on May 24 at the Stade de France against Reims, perhaps a historic hat-trick.
A hell of a challenge against Inter
The intensity that awaits the Parisians against Inter Milan will obviously have nothing to do. The Italian team trained by Simone Inzaghi has a style of play cut to hurt them: defensive rigor, stunning counterattacks and stopped science. The FC Barcelona of the Lamine Yamal jewel had the bitter experience in the semi-finals (3-3, 4-3 AP).
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“It’s their second final in three years, they are ready, there have been very few changes among playerssaid Luis Enrique. It is obvious that they have more experience, both by the age of the players and by the number of champions league won (three). »
“We are going to analyze them in advance”he therefore promised. The challenge for PSG will also be to stay in legs during these three weeks, while avoiding injuries. His prolific striker Ousmane Dembélé (33 goals and 13 assists in 46 games this season) will be able to quietly recover from his muscle injury from last week. The Parisian staff did not take it on Wednesday so as not to insult the future, and he took him in light of the adversity that awaits Paris on May 31.
