French club Paris Saint-Germain gained the upper hand in their Champions League semi-final against Arsenal with Ousmane Dembele scoring the only goal in a 1-0 victory during the first leg on Tuesday.
Dembele found the net early in the match at the Emirates Stadium, and Luis Enrique’s team maintained their lead with a steady performance that prevented Arsenal from scoring.
PSG will enter the return fixture at the Parc des Princes on May 7 as the favourites to advance to the final against either Barcelona or Inter Milan, aiming to capture the title for the first time.
“We showed the kind of team we are. We tried to play our way and scored the goal early playing that way,” PSG boss Luis Enrique said.
However, the French champions must not become complacent, considering their track record of dramatic failures in Europe.
Arsenal’s loss marked their first defeat in 18 home European matches, delivering a setback to their hopes of securing a first Champions League title.
Mikel Arteta described Arsenal’s journey to the semi-finals as a “beautiful story.” The final chapter may be disappointing, but Arteta maintained that their chances are not entirely extinguished.
The Gunners advanced to their first Champions League semi-final since falling to Manchester United in 2009 by defeating the reigning champions Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate.
Despite the electrifying atmosphere as kick-off drew near, they could not replicate the stunning performance that had overwhelmed Madrid with a 3-0 victory in the first leg.
As the Arsenal players convened for a pre-match huddle in the tunnel, Declan Rice rallied his teammates with a passionate reminder: “If we don’t have the ball, we die.”
PSG had previously eliminated Premier League titleholders Liverpool in the round of 16 and Aston Villa in the quarter-finals, having staged a comeback from two goals down to defeat Manchester City earlier in the league phase.
Arsenal was the only English team to have defeated them, holding a 2-0 victory in north London back in October.
However, on that occasion, PSG was missing the key player Dembele due to disciplinary issues, and Luis Enrique said that his team was “more complete” seven months later.
