As you may know, Paris Saint-Germain won the UEFA Champions League on Saturday. Here is a brief recap of their road to victory and my thoughts on the matches.
What is the UEFA Champions League?
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League is one of the biggest and most watched soccer tournaments in the world. It brings the best soccer club teams from different European cities and countries together to compete for the trophy. The tournament starts with a league phase where there are 36 teams, and each team plays eight matches against eight different opponents. After all the matches, the top eight teams move straight to the Round of 16, while the teams that finish 9th to 24th play in a knockout playoff to earn a spot. From there, the regular knockout rounds begin, with teams facing each other in two matches. From the Round of 16 onward, the tournament follows a traditional knockout format leading to the final.
What People Thought Before the Tournament:
Before the tournament started, people thought teams like Manchester City (England), Real Madrid (Spain), Paris Saint-Germain(France), Liverpool (England) and Barcelona (Spain) would go far because they’ve won in the past and have a lot of top players. Bayern Munich (Germany) and Arsenal (England) were also seen as strong contenders for the trophy because they’ve been improving and have a lot of young talent. Teams like Aston Villa (England) and Club Brugge (Belgium) weren’t expected to make it far because of their team and their players but the games had surprises.
Round of 16:
The Round of 16 had some thrilling matches. Arsenal faced PSV (Netherlands) and dominated the first leg with a record-breaking 7-1 win before drawing 2-2 in the second leg, moving on with a massive 9-3 aggregate score.
Barcelona went up against Benfica (Portugal) and advanced because of Barcelona’s strong attacking plays during both games.
Real Madrid managed to beat Atletico Madrid after a controversial penalty call.
Borussia Dortmund (Germany) took on Lille (France) and advanced with a good second game performance, securing their spot in the quarterfinals.
One of the most dramatic games was between Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool, which ended up with a penalty shootout and Paris Saint-Germain won.
Bayern Munich beat Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) devastatingly twice 3-0 in the first game and 2-0 in the second.
Aston Villa surprised many by beating Club Brugge over the two legs, continuing their impressive Champions League run.
Finally, Inter Milan dominated Feyenoord (Netherlands), winning both legs and going into the next round.
Quarter finals:
The quarterfinals were also filled with excitement. Arsenal faced Real Madrid and delivered a stunning performance, winning 5-1 on aggregate thanks to two incredible free kick goals by Declan Rice who is a strong midfielder for Arsenal. Paris Saint-Germain went up against Aston Villa. Despite Aston Villa’s strong efforts to reach the semi finals, Paris Saint-Germain advanced with a 5-4 score through both games. Barcelona took on Borussia Dortmund, beating them and taking the spot in the semifinals with a 5-3 aggregate win. Inter Milan went up with Bayern Munich ultimately winning 4-3 in both games to move forward. These results in the games set up a great intense match ups for the viewers with Arsenal facing Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona going up against Inter Milan.
Semi finals:
Arsenal faced Paris Saint-Germain. Paris Saint-Germain secured a 1-0 victory in the first leg, with Ousmane Dembele who is a fast forward for Paris Saint-Germain who can use both feet and can shoot well scoring the one and only goal. In the second leg Paris Saint-Germain extended the lead with two goals while Bukayo Saka a young and promising winger for Arsenal managed to pull one goal for Arsenal. Paris Saint-Germain advanced to the final with a 3-1 score from both games. The second semifinal was Barcelona against Inter Milan the first game was a 3-3 draw. In the second game Inter were leading in the 50th minute with two goals, Barcelona then responded with two goals. Near the end of the match Raphinha a fast winger with great shots scored in the 87th minute to give Barcelona a 3-2 lead seemingly securing the win for Barca but Francesco Acerbi a hard working defender for Inter scored a dramatic equalizer for Inter Milan in the 93rd minute. Then in extra time inters midfielder Davide Frattesi scored in the 99th minute to secure the win. With this game going down in history as one for the most entertaining semifinals. These games set up an exciting final between Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan.
My Prediction:
I was rooting for Inter Milan to win because I think Lamine Yamal is a young, talented player and has been playing well this season. However, since Paris Saint-Germain did win, I expect that Dembele has a strong chance of winning the Ballon d’or, an award that is given out annually to the best player of the year, because that tournament is a big factor in who gets chosen. With Dembele playing a big role in Paris Saint-Germain’s victory, he is likely above Lamine in this race. As a Lamine fan, this saddens me, but such is the way with sports fandoms.
Results:
Paris Saint-Germain won their first-ever Champions League trophy by beating Inter Milan by a devastating 5-0, also marking the largest winning margin in a Champions League final. Ousmane Dembele played a role for Paris Saint-Germain in helping the team dominate the game. This big win helps Dembele in the race for the Ballon d’or and he is now likely the favorite to win it. Overall the 2024-2025 Champions League was one of the most exciting champion league years in recent years.
