RB Leipzig 0-3 Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain have officially made their way to their first-ever Champions League Finals as they thumped RB Leipzig in Lisbon last Tuesday evening.
The reigning Ligue 1 champions weren’t initially pegged to make it this far according to our Champions League 2020 odds. But after all the wrong turns and heartaches, PSG have finally arrived.
From the get-go, PSG took control and it looked like the Red Bulls were simply overmatched. Marquinhos drew first blood early then it was followed up by a wonderful goal by Angel Di Maria right before the first half ended.
To cap off the night, full back Juan Bernat scored PSG’s third goal of the game and the team never looked back from there.
“We ate them up from minute one. We succeeded tonight and we’re in the final. That’s very important. We have to continue like tonight to make our dream come true. We want to make history for our club,” said Angel Di Maria.
“We stayed faithful to our style of play. We have to show our strength, and the player again showed their hunger to win,” said PSG boss Thomas Tuchel.
As always, SBOBET brings you last night’s package of Champions League 2020 highlights.
Highlights of the game
In seasons prior to this one, PSG were always shown the door in the earlier rounds. The said results have effectively cost Laurent Blanc and Unai Emery their head coaching jobs.
So after winning the Ligue 1 championship despite under abnormal circumstances due to COVID-19, the Parisians were desperate for a breakthrough here in the European showcase.
They suffered quite a scare when they were almost defeated by Atalanta in the quarterfinals, but late goals from Marquinhos and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting sent the Serie A contenders packing with a huge heartbreak.
Now looking determined as ever, Thomas Tuchel’s men are going all the way and they displayed their dominance against their German counterparts.
Kylian Mbappe was re-inserted into the starting XI since he is fit again and that meant good news for PSG.
He linked up with Neymar via a through-ball in the sixth minute for their first chance of the night. However, Neymar’s chip shot was wide and it hit the post instead.
They would finally score their first goal when Neymar was fouled in the box. Angel Di Maria volleyed a free kick which found a cutting Marquinhos, and the latter headed the ball past Leipzig goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi.
RB Leipzig struggled in their attack all night. With Timo Werner having departed already to Stamford Bridge, the Red Bulls had to lean on the likes of Yussuf Poulsen and Marcel Sabitzer.
Sabitzer fired a long-range shot but it was saved by Sergio Rico. Then in the 25th minute, Yussuf Poulsen received a Dani Olmo pull-back but he fired his attempt too wide.
Ultimately, what costed the Red Bulls this game was their porous defence.
In the 42nd minute, they lost possession of the ball 30 yards from goal to Leandro Paredes and then he passed the ball to Neymar, who found a cutting Angel Di Maria to go up 2-0 after a great attacking sequence.
11 minutes later after the first half break, the Red Bulls’ defence disappeared again when Nordi Mukiele slipped and gifted the possession to Angel Di Maria, whose cross was headed in by Juan Bernat.
Although RB Leipzig looked much better on the attack in the second half, they weren’t able to offer any resistance against the streaking Ligue 1 champions.
Key statistics
Angel Di Maria was named man of the match, and rightfully so as he was spectacular the whole game. The Argentinean winger was responsible for all of the game’s goals.
PSG’s first and third goals were Di Maria’s 88th and 89th assists in all competitions since he signed with the club five years ago. Only Lionel Messi has more in Europe’s top-five leagues during that span.
Moreover, Di Maria is undefeated in all 17 Champions League matches that he has scored in.
The trio of Angel Di Maria, Kylian Mbappe, and Neymar is one of the most dangerous attacking partnerships in football. When they all start together, they have only lost once in 12 matches.
Despite being shown the door, one can’t deny Julian Nagelsmann’s masterful job of leading the Red Bulls. RB Leipzig have come a long way since coming into existence in 11 years ago.
The future is bright for Leipzig and Nagelsmann, who is only 33 years old and he still has a lot of time on his side.
What’s next?
PSG will face the winner of the semifinals fixture between Lyon and Bayern Munich. The Champions League Final match will still be held at Lisbon on Monday.
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