Job by Julie Meyer April 27, 2024
By beating FC Barcelona, PSG obtained its ticket for the semi-finals of the Champions League, for the fourth time in its history. But what is the capital club’s record at this stage of the competition?
Real Sociedad, FC Barcelona… The Paris Saint Germain continues its path towards the Champions League final. After losing to FC Barcelona at home (2-3), the Parisians had to battle in the return match, until winning 4-1. A victory synonymous with qualification in the last four, for the fourth time in the club’s history. Back to the first three.
1995: First semi-final in the history of PSG against AC Milan
The 2023-24 edition of the Champions League has a taste of déjà vu for PSG. Because in 1995, the Parisian club also found itself in the semi-finals after eliminating the FC Barcelona. But during this edition, the Ile-de-France residents had to face a monster of Italian football: AC Milan.
The first leg will be played at the Parc des Princes. Euphoric in front of their audience, Luis Fernandez’s men even took the upper hand in the game over the Milanese. Led by Weah and Ginola, PSG creates great chances, but struggles to find the fault. Result: immediate punishment. On a counterattack at the very end of the match, it was AC Milan who took the advantage thanks to Zvonimir Boban. The Rossoneri leave a stunned Parc des Princes (0-1) victorious.
Two weeks later, at San Siro, they left the capital club no chance. Fabio Capello’s men are perfectly organized and PSG creates very few clear chances. At the end of Milan’s actions, Dejan Savisevic twice found the fault and shook the Parisian nets. PSG is eliminated, but comes out with its head held high after this first historic run in the Champions League.
2020: Crushing victory against RB Leipzig
It is in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic that Paris Saint-Germain manages to qualify for the second time in its history in the semi-finals of the Champions League. And in exceptional situations, exceptional rule: the matches in the final phase are played in a dry match. This Final 8 took place in Lisbon, Portugal
From the kick-off, Paris took possession of the ball and found the fault very quickly thanks to a header from Marquinhos (13th, 1-0). Led by an excellent Neymar, the Parisians doubled the lead thanks to a goal from Angel Di Maria, magnificently served by the Brazilian genius (42nd, 2-0). Badly off to a good start, RB Leipzig saw all their chances disappear when Juan Bernat deceived Peter Gulacsi (56th, 3-0). The score no longer changes and PSG then qualifies for the first final in its history, which will end in a defeat against Bayern Munich.
2021: The rout against Manchester City
PSG’s last semi-final dates back to the 2020-21 edition. It remains a bad memory for the capital club. After eliminating Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals, Paris Saint-Germain finds Manchester City, its opponent in the group stage (1 victory for each team).
The first leg, at the Parc des Princes, began in the best possible way for the Parisians, who opened the scoring through Marquinhos (15th, 1-0). The capital club retained the advantage for a long time, until Kevin de Bruyne offered the Citizens the equalizer on a free kick poorly judged by the Parisian defense and Keylor Navas (64th, 1-1). Then, it turns into a nightmare for the Ile-de-France residents: Mahrez gives City the advantage with another free kick which pierces the Parisian wall (71st, 1-2) and, barely a few minutes later, Idrissa Gueye is sent off for a tackle from behind on Gundogan.
The return match at the Etihad will unfortunately not be more favorable to PSG. Quickly trailing following Riyad Mahrez’s opener (11th, 1-0), the Parisians failed to score a single shot throughout the match. The Algerian international scored twice in the second half (63rd, 2-0) and PSG even finished the match once again outnumbered, after the expulsion of Angel Di Maria, author of a very ugly gesture on Fernandinho. Final score: 2-0, 4-1 on aggregate between the two matches. This time, Paris Saint-Germain will exit through the back door despite a more than honorable performance in the Champions League.
Football on myCANAL:
