Paris St-Germain vs Bayern Munich: A record-breaking semi-final – the antidote to modern football?
The tone for a dazzling European encounter was set when fans of both teams opened giant tifos before kick-off; PSG’s were emblazoned with the words ‘conquest of Europe’, while the visiting fans’ banner called on their side to ‘give it their all’.
That’s what both sides did in the chaotic opening 45 minutes at the Parc des Princes.
The two top scorers in this season’s Champions League needed to put five goals on the scoreboard in a fascinating, start-to-finish opening period.
Harry Kane’s penalty was canceled out by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s clinical finishing, before Joao Neves’ header and Michael Olise’s individual brilliance left the side.
Many will argue that PSG’s penalty was harsh after Bayern defender Alphonso Davies handled Ousmane Dembele’s cross in the penalty area. Dembele calmly converted to put PSG 3-2 ahead at half-time.
But the controversial incident was overshadowed by what experts called one of the greatest halves in football they have ever witnessed.
Former England captain Alan Shearer said on Amazon Prime: “I can’t stop smiling at how open and crazy this game is.
“This is one of the greatest matches I’ve ever been to. Two teams that believe they can outshine their opponents.”
The chaos continued after the break, with PSG again creating a three-goal cushion through Kvaratskhelia and Dembele, leaving some in doubt as to whether the result was a given.
However, Bayern did not want to let their chance to win the Champions League title for the first time since 2020 be taken away from them as they put up a fearful fight.
Goals from Dayot Upamecano and Diaz were met with stunned silence from the home fans and there was no other response from the PSG players as the home team finished the game with a slim advantage.
“I’ve been a manager for over 15 years and I have to say this is the most exciting thing. [match],” added Luis Enrique.
“It is important to show that this is the way to play football. Okay, as a coach we are not happy when you concede four goals, but I am happy that we won.”
This was the first time in any major semi-final in Europe that both sides had scored at least four goals, and the second time in the Champions League that Chelsea and Liverpool had drawn 4–4 in the 2008–09 quarter-final.
This match, in which PSG scored 43 goals and Bayern scored 42 goals, was also the first time in the Champions League that both teams scored more than 40 goals.
