Paris Saint-Germain have earned a spot in the UEFA Champions League final after defeating Arsenal 3–1 on aggregate.
The Ligue 1 side were superior over 180 minutes under Luis Enrique as his transformative season has PSG in the final for the first time since 2020. The superstars that defined much of PSG's recent era are gone, and this team is one, cohesive unit.
They outclassed Arsenal in crucial moments with Gianluigi Donnarumma coming up with multiple, crucial saves over both legs. A deserved finalist for a team that went through Brest, Liverpool and Aston Villa to get to the final four. Not to mention, a special moment for the fans in attendance at Parc des Princes who didn't get to see PSG's last journey to a UCL final given the COVID-19 pandemic.
Next up: a first-time final. PSG have never played Inter Milan in a competitive game. The French side look to right the wrongs suffered against Bayern Munich in 2020, while Inter Milan hope for better luck than what they suffered against Manchester City in 2023.
Takeaways from PSG's victory below.
The Most Belabored Talking Point in English Soccer This Season
A striker. Arsenal need a striker. Fortunately for the club, it's probably the last time this season that it will have pundits and fans talking about it given its season is more or less over.
Arsenal had multiple opportunities in the first half to take the lead through their attackers and midfield. Donnarumma made some massive saves that proved to be difference makers in the tie. Arsenal can create goal-scoring opportunities from nothing, or they can pin teams in and put them under pressure for 90 minutes. The instances, though, where they lack a striker is the creative areas on the right side of the box.
Bukayo Saka loves to receive the ball in the final third and size up a defender. Often times, opponents will double team him and a common occurrence is him recycling it to Martin Ødegaard on the corner of the penalty area. Fans have been crying out for their captain to shoot more, but that's not his first thought most of this season. Against teams in a low block, they remain compact and shut down the passing lanes and shooting angles because there's not a real threat centrally spearheading attacks.
Jurrien Timber, albeit having a strong season, is not the same defender as Ben White when it comes to making deeper overlapping runs behind Saka. So, attacks stall consistently from that position. Even more apparent in this game, there's no one to crash the box and penalty spot from crosses by the wingers. Andrea Berta and Mikel Arteta must get that recruitment right and potentially explore upgrades on the left.
The Score Line Doesn't Do PSG Justice
Only one goal in the first leg, a moment of brilliance from Fabián Ruiz and a curler from Achraf Hakimi will go into the history books, but this PSG side had Arsenal's number. Ruiz's opening goal of the second leg ended up being the difference maker over two legs as well. They were tactically superior in crucial moments, had better depth and the difference makers to book a spot in the final. They could've had three or four more goals in the tie, same goes for Arsenal. But, make no mistake PSG were the better side in the semifinals.
PSG demolished their French brethren Brest in the playoff round, won a tightly contested battle over 180 minutes on penalties against Liverpool and emerged victorious from another slugfest against Aston Villa. They've shown they can dominate teams a number of different ways, same goes for their final opponent.
Luis Enrique deserves an immense amount of credit for the changes he's made this summer to PSG to get them back in a Champions League final for the second time ever.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia Is the Signing of the Winter
Kvaratskhelia moved from Napoli to PSG this past January and has been a massive spark for this side. Already champions of France, he's a lethal attacker that create a moment of magic from anything.
He had Arsenal's defense on skates in the first leg and rattled the post early in the second, but what shouldn't go unnoticed from Wednesday's game is his defensive work rate. He worked effortlessly to track back and double up on Saka. Likely a tactical design from Luis Enrique, but even more important given Nuno Mendes's early yellow card in the second leg.
He'll have to work just as hard in the final against Inter Milan given how dynamic Denzel Dumfries can be. Still, the signing of the winter that will have a major role to play in Munich on May 31.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as PSG Overcome Arsenal to Reach Champions League Final: 3 Takeaways.
