In only 32 days, Budapest, Hungary, will become the 19th city to host a UEFA Champions League final. If you include the European Cup finals before the UCL era, the number of cities goes up to 28.
But which two teams will face off for club football’s most coveted trophy on 30 May at the Puskás Aréna?
To settle that, the French side Paris Saint-Germain took on FC Bayern Munich from Germany on Tuesday, 28 April at the Parc des Princes in Paris, France. PSG are the defending UCL champions, winning their first title last year, with a 5–0 ‘demolition job’ over Internazionale from Italy in the final. They also have the current Ballon d’Or title holder in their line-up, the French forward Ousmane Dembélé.
Meanwhile, Bayern are gunning for their seventh UCL gold. The last time they finished first in the competition was during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic era, in 2020.
There is one thing the Germans certainly have over their French opponents in this match-up: Bayern have already secured their domestic league title. They lead runner-ups Borussia Dortmund by 15 points with only three games to go. Paris Saint-Germain, on the other hand, still have to put a lot of focus on their remaining league games. While they too are topping the table (as one would expect), RC Lens, in second place, are within shooting distance, six points behind with four games to go.
The first half really lived up to the neutral fans’ expectations.
Bayern struck first, after prolific goal scorer Harry Kane converted a penalty won by Luis Díaz in the 17th minute. However, this did not deter the home side, who quickly turned the scoreline around.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia slotted one home into the low far corner from the corner of the penalty box in the 25th minute. Then, just eight minutes later, 5’8-tall João Neves defied his stature and headed a goal into Manuel Neuer’s net after a corner by Dembélé.
By the 41st minute, however, the score was level again. Michael Olise dribbled into a crowded PSG box, then fired a rocket into the roof of Matvey Safonov’s net from about 15 yards out. Right before halftime, Swiss referee Sandro Schärer awarded the home side a penalty too. Dembélé stepped up and scored—which meant that Paris Saint-Germain got to go into the dressing room in the lead after a five-goal thriller in the first 45 minutes.
At the beginning of the second half, PSG seemed to be running away with it. Kvaratskhelia scored his second and his team’s fourth on the night in the 56th minute; then Ousmane Dembélé followed it up two minutes later after a counter-attack.
However, in the 65th minute, Dayot Upamecano helped Joshua Kimmich’s cross from a free kick into the PSG goal with the slightest of touches. Díaz also got himself a peach of a goal just three minutes later, putting Bayern just one goal away from equalizing again in this crazy game.
However, that was where the craziness ended for the night in Paris. Everything is still up for grabs in the second leg in Munich; either team would deserve to qualify for the final in Budapest. One thing is for certain: this game will be remembered by football fans for generations to come.
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