Paris Saint-Germain reached the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield and a 4-1 penalty shootout success to overcome a one-goal first-leg loss in France and cap a remarkable fightback from what was a desperate league phase situation. Luis Enrique’s men were good value for their place in the final eight having gone down narrowly at Parc des Princes despite a dominant showing only to show collective mental fortitude rarely witnessed during Qatar’s ownership of the Ligue 1 giants in England to get the job done.
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Ousmane Dembele and Gianluigi Donnarumma were the heroes on the field with the in-form France international getting the crucial goal in Liverpool before the Italian shot-stopper excelled during penalties as part of a surprisingly pragmatic approach from the visitors’ Spanish tactician. The result over two legs also capped an improbable turnaround which saw PSG win their final three UCL league phase fixtures — including a stunning fightback victory over Manchester City — before demolishing fellow French representatives Stade Brestois 29 in the knockout round playoffs.
The momentum built up between an away win over Red Bull Salzburg and that famous night at Anfield is impressive and running parallel to those good results has been the rebirth of Dembele but also the arrival of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the January transfer window. Paris are suddenly a far more menacing prospect than they were when losing away at Arsenal and Bayern Munich as well as Atletico Madrid at home just a few months ago at the start of the season and arguably now rank among the remaining favorites for the title having disposed of the previous leading pick.
Many will point at the City win as the catalyst for all of this newfound optimism and rejuvenation on the continental scene and it did absolutely mark a turning point in terms of PSG’s chances of progression and notably their self-belief. However, Les Parisiens have been working towards this moment for even longer and it dates back to the departures of star trio Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi as Luis Enrique arrived and got this new era underway with those early methods and ideas implemented finally coming to fruition despite last year’s outlying Champions League semifinal run.
This is more of a legitimate team than ever before and although Mbappe, Neymar and Messi are huge hits talent-wise, it is not like the capital club are running low on ability with Dembele, Bradley Barcola, Desire Doue and Joao Neves just a few of the young gems thriving at Parc des Princes. Next up are Aston Villa of the English Premier League in the quarterfinals which pits Luis Enrique against Unai Emery against each other almost 10 years on from La Remontada as well as Marco Asensio and Lucas Digne coming up against their current and former employers in a tie which PSG will be favorites in.
“Of course, it will be special for me playing against PSG,” said Emery of the draw. “I cannot compare it to when I was there, though. A quarterfinal is fantastic and we are motivated and excited. Obviously, PSG will be difficult as they showed their ability in beating the best team in Europe. It is a huge challenge for us — the players, staff, fans and myself.” “It will be a special and beautiful game,” added loaned Asensio who will be eligible to play against his parent club. “I watched the Liverpool game and I am very happy for my PSG friends who won and qualified. It was complicated but they did it so I was happy.”
With that in mind, Le Classique against fierce rivals Olympique de Marseille in Ligue 1 this weekend is the perfect way for Luis Enrique’s men to keep this current form — including an unbeaten domestic season — going against high-quality opposition before turning their sights towards Villa during the first international break of 2025. Les Bleus’ PSG contingent has grown with Doue joining Dembele, Barcola, Warren Zaire-Emery and Juventus loanee Randal Kolo Muani in Didier Deschamps’ latest squad before returning for the final few months of the season knowing that potential Ligue 1, Coupe de France and Champions League success are well and truly on the menu still.
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