MUNICH — Paris Saint-Germain are a team on the brink of greatness, a status that only serial winners can truly claim as their own. Arsenal could stop them from reaching that pinnacle in the Champions League final in Budapest, Hungary, next month, but they might not even believe that inside the Emirates.
After last week’s epic drama in the Parc des Princes, when Luis Enrique’s team edged an incredible semifinal first leg against Bayern Munich in a 5-4 victory, the reigning European champions finished the job Wednesday with a 1-1 draw in the Allianz Arena to seal a 6-5 aggregate win.
But don’t let the scoreline, made acceptable for Bayern by Harry Kane‘s stoppage time equalizer, fool you. After taking a third-minute lead through Ousmane Dembélé following Khvicha Kvaratskhelia‘s burst down the left flank, PSG controlled the game and could have scored five again, just as they did on their last visit to the Allianz Arena for last season’s Champions League final against Inter Milan.
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It was only wasteful finishing that prevented the French team from inflicting a humiliating defeat on Bayern. Yes, the Bundesliga champions had their chances — most of them spurned by Jamal Musiala — but there was never any sense that a PSG defense marshaled by captain Marquinhos was going to allow a repeat of the first leg’s careless defending.
The stats suggest it was an even contest, with Bayern having 18 shots to PSG’s 15, but there are times when the numbers don’t tell anything like the real story. Bayern’s chances were snatched shots, hopeful punts and the occasional clear opening, but every time PSG attacked, they carved open the home side’s defense and should have been ruthless. They were like a cat toying with a mouse, knowing they could end the contest at a time of their choosing, and that is what should worry Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta ahead of the final on May 30.
PSG are simply a level above every other club side in the world right now. This semifinal was regarded as the real final because of Bayern’s impressive run to this stage, but Enrique’s side made it through without really feeling under threat in Wednesday’s second leg. They are a modern-day dream team, the closest thing we have seen to Barcelona‘s legendary side of Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta. PSG can tear teams apart, they can pass them into submission and they can defend — not that you would know it from the first leg.
No player has registered more Champions League knockout stage goal involvements than Dembélé (16) since the start of last season, while Kvaratskhelia is second on that list with 15. The Georgia winger, arguably the best player not to qualify for this summer’s World Cup, is also the first player to score or assist in seven consecutive knockout stages on the same season. Only Kylian Mbappé has had as many goal involvements (16) in the competition this season.
Arsenal must somehow find a way to stop Kvaratskhelia in Budapest, as he is the talisman of Enrique’s side. But Dembélé, Désiré Doué and Bradley Barcola are pretty dangerous, too.
The Gunners are strong in midfield, but Declan Rice, Martín Zubimendi and Martin Odegaard risk a night chasing shadows next month against Fabián Ruiz, João Neves and Vitinha.
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Nicol: Arsenal will be asking for trouble if they sit back vs. PSG
Steve Nicol debates how Arsenal should look to approach the Champions League final vs. PSG.
Arsenal’s forward line (regardless of whether Kai Havertz or Viktor Gyökeres starts up front) is nowhere near as formidable as Bayern’s front three of Kane, Luis Díaz and Michael Olise, and they were all kept quiet in Munich, until Kane’s late strike, by a PSG defense without the injured right back Achraf Hakimi. (Warren Zaïre-Emery had some nervy moments as a stand-in, normally used to playing in central midfield, but held firm against Díaz.)
You could make a case for goalkeeper Matvei Safonov being PSG’s weak link — he is certainly a downgrade on last season’s No. 1, Gianluigi Donnarumma — and Arsenal will target the Russia international at set pieces. Yet it could be a very one-sided final if Arteta’s side is relying solely on scoring from corners and free kicks.
Ironically, PSG don’t even employ a set piece coach. Arsenal have done brilliantly thanks to the influence of theirs, Nicolas Jover, but Enrique has said his team play a different way, with the ball on the ground and passing patterns designed to rip opponents apart.
Only one team, Real Madrid, has defended a Champions League title since the competition was restructured in 1992 — Zinedine Zidane’s side won three in a row between 2016 and 2018 — but PSG can now emulate the Spanish giants by going back-to-back this season. They have a supreme coach in Enrique, who has already won it twice with Barca and PSG, and the team is now playing with the supreme confidence and maturity that all of the great sides exhibit.
Last season’s experience of winning against Inter will also play in their favor against an Arsenal side that has none of PSG’s track record and a coach in Arteta who has won just one major trophy — the 2020 FA Cup — as a manager.
Anything can happen in a final, as Chelsea proved by beating PSG in last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup final, but the odds are stacked against Arsenal.
PSG are almost the perfect team: They know how to win and they are growing accustomed to the taste of success. If they can defend their Champions League crown in Budapest, they will truly establish themselves as one of the greatest sides in European history.
It is there for the taking, and Arsenal couldn’t have picked a more formidable opponent.
