At the large rectangular table in the middle of the Princes Park dressing room, Kylian Mbappe and Presnel Kimpembe jump as far as they can. Water is thrown in, Sergio Rico joins, as are Idrissa Gueye and Rafinha. Other players and staff members touch the table to the beat as they sing, “We’re in the semis! We’re, we’re, we’re in the semis!”
Marquinhos, with his immaculate white hood, is also there. He was injured and missed a 1-0 defeat on Tuesday against Bayern Munich (a good enough result to see Paris Saint-Germain progress to the next stage of the Champions League with goals away from home), but we could hear his voice from the stands, cheering on his teammates.
Leandro Paredes, one of the leaders of this squad, keeps shouting, “Let’s go! Let’s go!” every time he hugs a teammate. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the president of PSG, welcomed all the players back in the locker room and then congratulated each and every one of them for the second time on the tour, as did Leonardo, the sporting director.
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Manager Mauricio Pochettino has to leave to do all his postmatch media functions, but the huge smile on his face says it all. This is a happy dressing room: a a lot happy dressing room. PSG is in the semifinals of the Champions League for the second consecutive season and is gradually consolidating its place among the best European clubs and the perennial candidates in the Champions League.
This time, they got there in the right way: more than two parts, beating Lionel Messi first and now Bayern, world and European champions. Each time, it was a real battle, a nail-biting scenario. But in both ties, what prevailed was the spirit and solidarity of Paris Saint-Germain.
Of course, Kylian Mbappe and Keylor Navas were the heroes of both games against Barcelona and Munich. Surprisingly, the Costa Rican goalkeeper has yet to lose a draw in two Champions League leagues in which he has played. And Neymar, voted on Tuesday as the party’s man, was once again the star of the show, though he should have taken at least one of the chances he created.
Paris did it, though, because they played as a team, mostly. This is the message that Pochettino has been telling his players since day one: we can have great individuals like Neymar, Mbappe or Angel Di Maria, but we can only get far if we do it all together, otherwise it will not be possible.
Halfway through the first leg, when Bayern dominated the game, he told his men to stay calm and score again and win. To happen. On Tuesday, Pochettino told them they could face pressure in the second half after Bayern took the lead just before the break. And they did.
This PSG team won because it has become a definition of mental and collective strengths, with special talents within the group.
Of course, they benefited from all the players missing Bayern (Robert Lewandowski, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka), but the Parisians also had problems. They didn’t have Marco Verratti or Alessandro Florenzi for either match, while Marquinhos only lasted 30 minutes in the first leg and is now out until the first leg of the semifinals. Paredes, whom Pochettino has made such an important part of the team, was suspended for the match last week.
Paris had their problems, but they stood above them to make sure their Champions League adventure continued. Before this return match, Joshua Kimmich, arguably the best number 6 in the world, said he was “convinced that Bayern would pass, because they are the best team in the world”.
Let’s just say these comments didn’t go unnoticed, especially by Neymar, who used them as additional motivation.
And when Daniele Orsato, who was the referee of the Champions League final that PSG lost to the Germans eight months ago, whistled for the last time on Tuesday night at the Parc des Príncipes, the Brazilian superstar celebrated with Walls almost in Kimmich’s face – – A stage that Neymar said he reached his destination.
“It’s funny, because I didn’t even celebrate to mess with him; it was more with Leo, and I ended up celebrating with him. It was fate that brought me closer. [Kimmich]”Neymar said after the match.
On Tuesday night there was an element of revenge, although really no taxpayer said so. The demons of the 2017 comeback against Barcelona have already passed after the round of 16 of this season. The ghosts of the 2020 final against Bayern have also disappeared. Earlier in the season, the team also sent the bad memories against Manchester United from 2019 winning at Old Trafford.
It has been a rewarding season in the Champions League for Paris, and now he cannot stop them, although Pochettino insists they are not the favorites to win it.