Arsenal eliminated
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Paris Saint-Germain will contest their second Champions League final after a hard-fought win over Arsenal in the semi-finals. After a 1-0 win in the first leg in North London, PSG raced to a two-goal advantage on home turf courtesy of two stunning goals from Fabián Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi. The Ligue 1 champions were easing into the final but Arsenal rallied late and reduced the aggregate deficit to two goals after Bukayo Saka netted and the England international spurned a glorious chance to equalise on the night.
But PSG fully deserved to progress as they were comfortably the better side over the two legs and they will face Inter Milan in the Munich showpiece on May 31st. Inter emerged victorious from one of the greatest semi-finals in history against Barcelona with a 7-6 triumph on aggregate. Since the Qatari takeover in 2011, PSG have been obsessed with winning the Champions League. The Parisians spent billions on ‘Galaticos’ to achieve their main goal but they fell short in the 2020 final against Bayern Munich despite possessing superstars in Kylian Mbappé and Neymar – Lionel Messi also arrived shortly after that defeat. PSG, however, have abandoned that approach and Luis Enrique has been the catalyst to their newfound identity and it could be a special night for the Spaniard in Munich.
Can Luis Enrique match Pep Guardiola’s treble record?
Since his appointment in 2023, Enrique has transformed PSG from a star-studded squad full of egos to a structured and hard-working unit. Mbappe, Neymar and Messi were all outstanding individual players and put up impressive attacking numbers in France but they were often unwilling to contribute defensively and PSG lacked cohesion. Enrique won a domestic treble during his first season in Paris but he’s just two wins away from winning the widely recognised ultimate treble – Champions League, domestic league and domestic cup.
After already clinching the Ligue 1 title, PSG fac Reims in the Coupe de France final just one week before the Champions League showpiece against Inter. If PSG win those two finals then Enrique will become only the second manager in history to win the treble on two separate occasions, joining Pep Guardiola. Enrique previously won the treble with Barcelona during the 2014/15 season as the Catalan club lifted the Champions League, LaLiga and Copa del Rey. Guardiola also completed that achievement with Barcelona in 2008/09 and he made history by clinching his second career treble with Manchester City during the 2022/23 campaign.
