PSG frolic with joy. Some of Barcelona’s players are crying as they appear to be in astonishment. Even though PSG performed admirably this evening, Barca was the ones who orchestrated their own demise. With less than thirty minutes remaining, Ronald Araújo was sent off for cynically tugging on Bradley Barcola, and João Cancelo carelessly and recklessly upended Ousmane Dembélé, allowing the eventual winning penalty to be conceded. Better Than a Shambles.
However, PSG was outstanding. Not just the aforementioned Barcola, Marquinhos, Vitinha, and Achraf Hakimi, but also Kylian Mbappé. Oh, and Dembélé, who scored the goal that changed the course of this match despite playing to a background of enraged jeers. In the semifinals, PSG will play Borussia Dortmund, who defeated Atletico Madrid 4-2 tonight and 5-4 overall.
90 minutes plus 5: The stands were filled with tears. And it makes sense: despite having a two-goal lead, Barcelona spectacularly let everything slide through their fingers. Nonetheless, PSG has been incredible, even though Ronald Araújo’s foolish challenge served as the impetus for their comeback.
90 minutes and three seconds later: Mbappe tries a long-range rake to tie the score. Ter Stegen blocks a shot that is aimed at the upper right corner with remarkable skill.
Ninety minutes plus two: The seats at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys are filling up quickly. The crowd of home fans erupted.
90 minutes: The PSG festivities are almost too wild. There are going to be seven more minutes. Donnarumma has a reservation for something.
PSG will play Borussia Dortmund in the semi-final since they are virtually guaranteed a spot. Image courtesy of Juan Medina/Reuters
GOAL! PSG 1-4 Barcelona (Mbappe 89); aggregate 4-6
Raphinha attempts a straight-up goal from the corner. Donnarumma has to tip the bar over. However, PSG seizes the ball from the next corner and proceeds to counterattack, romping upfield. Right down Hakimi. He makes a low crossing. Mbappe attempts a shot on goal. Ter Stegen uses his knee to save. Asensio drives hard to meet the rebound. At the very end, Ter Stegen makes a save. When Kounde tries to clear, all he does is cushion the ball into Mbappe’s path, and he doesn’t let another chance pass. This tie is over when he slides into the bottom right position!
After Kylian Mbappe ties things up for PSG, the French team will undoubtedly advance to the semi-final.
88 minutes: Lewandowski quickly bowls down the middle of the park after snatching the ball in the center circle. He gets struck by a blow from the box’s edge. Marquinhos celebrates as if he’s just scored a goal after blocking with his behind. However, it will be a corner that is secured once Kolo Muani takes Dembele’s place.
86 minutes in: Barcelona is having their most successful run of play since taking the lead early in the first half. A small amount of possession in the French half. The visitors appear a little uneasy all of a sudden. However, Martinez then attempts a goal-kick by floating a cross from the left out of play. Release the pressure. PSG takes its time restarting.
85 minutes: Raphinha makes a right swing and takes it. Donnarumma completely misses the ball as he dashes off to punch. He bumps into Lewandowski, but when the whistle blows, it’s for a striker’s obvious offside rather than a penalty. There, the PSG goalkeeper escapes with a major one.
84 minutes in: Felix wins a free kick directly to the right of the PSG box, marking his first action. Tremendous opportunity for the eleven men up next!
83 minutes: João Cancelo and Frenkie de Jong are replaced by João Félix and Fermin as a double change for Barcelona.
82 minutes: A reminder that a goal for Barcelona would result in extra time, even if away goals are no longer possible. If necessary, sanctions would also apply.
Eighty minutes in, Manuel Ugarte replaces Warren Zaïre-Emery, with PSG manager Luis Enrique obviously determined to hold onto what he has. Charles Antaki comments, “I’d certainly pay to hear what’s going through Xavi’s mind.” “If the Catalan swearing were eliminated, it would sound like “that it’s come to this!” repeatedly.”
Raphinha dribbles forcefully down the inside-left channel in minute 78. He only needs to push and drag back a little to gain enough room to shoot. He mishandles the ball and it goes out of play. Barca has done better here, maybe remembering that PSG has their own Champions League demons to face.
In the PSG area, Raphinha squirms free from Achraf Hakimi and Lucas Hernandez. Image courtesy of Albert Gea/Reuters
77 minutes: Lee Kang-in and Marco Asensio take the places of Barcola and Fabian Ruiz in a double switch for PSG. The latter, who was once a member of Real Madrid, receives the expected response.
75 minutes: Barcola gains good ground down the left, but Cubarsi denies him as he is about to cross for Mbappe. The more seasoned teammates let the young defender down despite his strong performance tonight.
73 minutes: Lewandowski has a little window of space, 25 yards out. He lets the ball pass through him from right to left, then pearls a hard low drive in the direction of the bottom right. As it approaches, Donnarumma extends a powerful arm. Ferran Torres gets set to slot the ball when it sits up, but Marquinhos suddenly appears and hooks clear. Just to remind you that Barca is still in this!
72 minutes: Barcelona needs a goal, but they are unable to put together a play that even somewhat resembles a coordinated attack at this point. PSG is currently playing with a lot of comfort. Justin Kavanagh says, “More than a club… but somewhat less than a team tonight.” “It will be a blessing if they can end with the team physician off the field.”
70 minutes in: Dembele is still whistled, but now it’s done in a little sloppy manner. A corner is won by him down the right. Barca only partially clears it, but Mbappe soon crosses from the left and almost finds Barcola in the center. Barcola would have definitely poked home from close range if he had made contact.
68 minutes: Dembele crosses after dribbling down the right flank. Inaccessible. Cast aside. He gives a big smile. Would you not pay cash to hear his inner monologue?
66 minutes in: Barcelona has completely lost the plot. The referee, who has been a little too card happy but hasn’t made any controversial calls, has angered the home crowd. Gary Naylor jokes in the meantime, saying, “More Than A Club-also a circus!”
64 minutes: Half of the corner is cleared. Barcelona responds to PSG with a goal from Gundogan, who crashes into the area from the left. Instead of giving him a penalty, the referee books him for diving. Then another Barcelona employee received a red card. This is crazy!
63 minutes in: Marquinhos receives a booking for colliding with Lewandowski’s back. There’s a good likelihood that tonight someone else will walk. The next free kick is wedged along the inside-left channel by Gundogan. Ferran Torres brings the ball down, but Barcola shows up to blooter out for a corner before he can get a shot off.
62 minutes: Ferran Torres replaces Pedri for Barca in response.
GOAL! PSG 1-3 Barcelona (Mbappe 61 pen); aggregate 4-5
With all of his composure, Mbappe smashes an incredible penalty kick into the top-left corner. The ball lashed into the inner side netting even though Ter Stegen was traveling in the right direction. What a kick in the spot! This is one heck of a tie!
The penalty is smashed home by Kylian Mbappe. PSG is ahead in the tie again.
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The penalty is smashed home by Kylian Mbappe. PSG is ahead in the tie again. Image courtesy of Juan Medina/Reuters
21.23 BST
60 minutes: Ter Stegen sways back and forth along his goal line. He receives the what-for from the referee who approaches him. Mbappe waits calmly for the chaos to pass before…
PSG is penalized!
59 minutes: Dembele dribbles from the right into the Barca area, but he makes a bad touch. João Cancelo enters hysterically and takes him out from behind when he seems to be going nowhere. What madness! As obvious a foul as you can find. The referee indicates the location.
58 min: At this point, PSG only. If Barcelona can turn the tide in this match, that will be very remarkable.
Barcelona receives their second red card of the evening after 56 minutes. It’s for their manager Xavi, who occasionally piques the interest of official Uefa hoardings by high-kicking them. Here, the hosts run the risk of totally losing the plot.
Lewandowski made a pathetic attempt to shut Vitinha down there for fifty-five minutes. But just after the restart, Barca almost took the lead back! At twenty yards out, Gundogan is given time and space, and his low, screaming shot just misses the left-hand post. Donnarumma was thoroughly thrashed!
GOAL! PSG 1-2 Barcelona (Vitinha 54); aggregate 4-4
Barcelona is unable to go. Dembele wins a corner by crossing from the right and takes it himself. The ball is moved back to Hakimi, who rolls over the large pocket space right outside the box to Vitinha. He advances one step to the right side of the D and rasps a low shot into the bottom right corner, crossing Ter Stegen. It was inevitable!
Vitinha gives PSG a point!
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Vitinha gives PSG a point! Image courtesy of Albert Gea/Reuters
53 minutes: Judging from the first-half exchanges, Barca may be in for a long evening from here on out. With the goal of tying the score, the visitors are attacking their hosts in waves.
52 minutes: Mbappe sprints into the Barca box after dribbling a pass down the inside left for Fabián Ruiz. He snips a low shot that veers inches wide of the right-hand post and across the planted Ter Stegen. Once more, so close!
50 minutes later, Lewandowski is issued a booking for pushing Hernandez’s head sideways with his elbow. You’ve seen red cards awarded for less, I’ll tell you that. Barca would have had a lot of problems.
49 minutes: Hakimi takes a speculative swing while marching down the inside-right channel. With his block pinging backwards and soaring over the bar, Ter Stegen almost makes an embarrassing mess of it. barely finished. Barcola almost pushes home from the left corner of the six-yard box from the ensuing corner. Ter Stegen gathers, more confident this time.
47 minutes: Raphinha gives PSG the ball cheaply, and the visitors quickly respond. Barcola attempts to find Mbappe by passing via the inside-left channel and into the box. The ball is backheeled on the byline by Mbappe, off Kounde, and out for a corner, but for some reason, the linesman gives Barca a goal kick. Mbappe is in shock.
Barcelona initiates play in the second half. Nothing has changed.
Postbag at the halfway point. “After the red card, why in the world would the Barcelona players encircle the referee in that manner? They had to have known, right? That he wouldn’t put his card back in his pocket. I assumed Pep was currently Man City’s coach. I suppose his influence endures. Eagle Brosi
“I’m not suggesting that Ousmane Dembele needs to exact revenge on people to reach the pinnacles of his ability, but he has scored 67% of his goals this season against Barcelona. The power of pettiness exists. – Kári Tulinius
Entertainment during halftime, with an eye toward tomorrow night.
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Halftime: PSG 1-0 Barcelona (Ag: 4-3)
Cubarsí has ample time to give possession, enabling PSG to make one more assault of the half. Barcola and Fabian Ruiz combine down the left, but Cubarsi makes up for his mistake by deflecting the latter’s low cross out of play. After a spectacular to-and-fro half, though, there’s no time for the corner to be taken, and both teams rush off to figure out what to do next. A monumental second half awaits!
Dembele is this close to tying the score at 45 minutes plus three. Nuno Mendes makes a deep left turn. Dembele intercepts the ball as it drops and unleashes a volley that veers millimeters wide of the left-hand post and across Ter Stegen. Whoa.
45 min +2: A ball is lofted down the middle by Gundogan. In an attempt to deflect it away from the area’s edge, Lewandowski tries to telescope a leg, but he is unable to make contact, and Donnarumma asserts.
45 minutes plus one: During the first of the three extra minutes, Fabian Ruiz is scheduled for a cunning and sarcastic clip on Pedri’s heel.
45 minutes: Barcola advances left, twisting Kounde inside out like an old sock, and then whipping a shot-cum-cross out for a goal kick through the six-yard box. It would be nice to hear the halftime whistle for Barcelona.
44 minutes: Raphinha runs smack-bang into Zaire-Emery to win a free kick. The hosts get a little break, which they take their time to enjoy.
At 42 minutes in, Barcelona is slaying it. PSG shoving them away while inhaling the smell of blood. From the edge of the D, Vitinha fires a shot over the bar.
41 min: Well, Dembele has put a few quavering throats with those whistles. Following the goal, Martinez and Mbappe engage in a childlike grappling match before both players enter the book. This drama is real!
GOAL: PSG 1-0 Barcelona (Dembele 40); aggregate 4-3
Barcola crosses the six-yard box with a low cross after moving quickly to the left. Mbappe misses the center pass as the ball escapes his grasp, but Dembele, entering from the right, smashes an incredible ten-yard shot into the upper-right corner of the net! Go for it!
Dembele Ousmane
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Ousmane Dembele strikes hard against his former team to give PSG a quick lead again in this match. Image courtesy of Albert Gea/Reuters
Dembele whistles to the right at 38 minutes. João Cancelo perfectly timed a tackle by sticking out a leg, but it was still an exhilarating run. More fun for the domestic audience.
Lewandowski and Hakimi join forces at 36 minutes. The former trips and falls, holding his ear. The home crowd demand red-colored retaliation when the referee awards Barcelona the challenge, even though it was a 50-50 shot. That is a stretch; it is only a free kick. Lewandowski is not content. Hakimi is also not entirely satisfied with the outcome. István Kovács, the referee, is currently employed after making that significant—though wise—decision. Barcelona’s supporters will be howling over everything.
