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Paris Saint-Germain 0 Borussia Dortmund 1 – Crucial Hummels, PSG’s attacking problems

Theo

Borussia Dortmund managed a 1-0 win against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday evening and moved into the Champions League final with a 2-0 aggregate win.

After a tentative first half in which neither team had much chance, PSG almost took the lead within five minutes of the break when Warren Zaire-Emery hit the post. This proved to be a major setback for the hosts as just a few minutes later Mats Hummels shot highest from a corner, heading home a header and doubling his team’s overall lead.

The hosts eventually got into the game, but as the game progressed they found it difficult to break through Dortmund’s defense. Gregor Kobel also made a decisive save to keep his team in the lead. It was enough to get Dortmund into the final.

Here Peter Rutzler, Sebastian Stafford-Bloor and Liam Tharme recorded a monumental victory for Dortmund.

How important was Hummels?

The fact that Dortmund are in a Champions League final is remarkable enough. The fact that they had to rely on a flawless performance from 35-year-old Mats Hummels was even more important.

This European season, Hummels was by far Dortmund’s best player. He often looked ten years younger – in the timing of his tackles, in his willingness to get out of defense and pass the ball forward. Round after round it was vintage Hummels.

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His one-on-one defense was excellent in Paris. It was often courageous. But it was also measured. Hummels didn’t rise to the occasion. He was calm in the chaos. The butterfly effect was crucial, as this stability seemed to inspire Nico Schlotterbeck to a similarly outstanding performance.

Schlotterbeck can be prone to errors. In the best case scenario, however – when the balance around him is right – he is wonderfully cocky on the ball and a great asset to the possession game.

He absolutely was in Paris, and having this version of Hummels at his side, with all the confidence it seemed to inspire, was a big reason why.

Sebastian Stafford Bloor

Why did PSG have problems in attack?

Once again Luis Enrique made a strange tactical change for a Champions League round of 16 second leg.

In San Sebastian against Real Sociedad it was Bradley Barcola and Kylian Mbappe as shared strikers in a 4-3-1-2; Away in Barcelona, ​​Mbappe was number 9 with Barcola and Ousmane Dembele on the wings. At the start of the group stage he had paired Randal Kolo Muani with Mbappe and also used Marco Asensio as a false nine. The return of Goncalo Ramos was a surprise; This was only his second European start of the season.

Luis Enrique spent the entire European campaign trying to find an attacking alchemy but never quite came to terms with it. PSG were consistently underwhelmed in the first half and needed their best players to open games in the second half.

Ramos was wasteful as he was selected so PSG had a pure number 9 and a strong presence in the penalty area against a Dortmund team with two (not three) centre-backs. But PSG struggled to get their wingers one-on-one and they played safely, shifting midfielder Fabian Ruiz to the left, providing cover for Jadon Sancho on counter-attacks but reducing their central presence.

PSG crossed frequently – but without the wingers attacking the back post or the midfielders smashing into the penalty area. They had 15 crosses in the first half, the most in a Champions League knockout match since their game against Manchester City in May 2021 (16). Achraf Hakimi’s typical setbacks were rare.

25 shots off target were PSG’s most in a European knockout game since the start of the 2018/19 season. Across the field, this is a young team that lacks the experience and talent of Dortmund, but has a disappointing attacking performance from a team that has scored in 24 consecutive home games.

Liam Tharme

How will Mbappe remember his PSG final?

This was neither the ending Kylian Mbappe nor PSG expected.

The French captain won’t be leaving the Parc des Princes quite yet: PSG will face Toulouse in Ligue 1 this weekend.

But this was his Champions League final, the moment when the club’s top scorer, both in all competitions and in Europe, was eliminated. He didn’t always have the affection of PSG fans during his time in Paris – a result of his frequent “near exits”, as L’Equipe outlined this week. But he was loved in Paris as a leader for club and country. Before the game, his name was shouted the loudest by fans as the teams were read out.

But this game and this tie didn’t go according to script.

In both games, Mbappe struggled to find his moment. At Signal Iduna Park he had a glimpse; He steps off the left flank to roll the ball into the post. Tonight he took advantage of half-chances – an opportunistic volley from distance, a 30-yard throw that went wide.

Dortmund deserve a lot of credit for keeping him quiet. And PSG criticized a lack of ingenuity in the final third, which saw them resort to high crosses that made it difficult to find targets. This is not Mbappe’s game.

In the second leg he returned to the left flank, but that made little difference here. Only once before has Mbappe failed to score when he started both games in the knockout stages of the Champions League – and that was against Real Madrid in the round of 16 of the 2017/18 season, early in his time in the Champions League Paris. This wasn’t the kind of closed circle he was looking for.

Mbappe was not an outlier and overall was not involved in this duel. In fact, before this Champions League clash, Mbappe created the most chances under pressure (23), but none of them were converted by his teammates. Mbappe was simply never where PSG needed him: at the end of their best chances.

And when one finally appeared – a bouncing ball in the penalty area that had to be tamed in the 86th minute – his shot went into the ground, a scuffed connection, deflected up and off the crossbar. It should not be.

Peter Rutzler

Was Terzic’s game plan a surprise?

Many of Edin Terzic’s critics question his tactical acumen. This performance in Paris, which was as organized and tenacious as Dortmund had been all season, was a strong return.

A notable feature of PSG’s first-half performance was their lack of penetration in the center of the pitch. This was the result of a well-executed game plan.

The idea was quite simple: Dortmund played compactly in the middle and sent pressing players – especially Karim Adeyemi – up to direct the ball into a narrow channel on the right. It made sense: with Dembele on one side, it was better for Dortmund to take advantage of their chances than with Mbappe on the other.

Only 17 percent of PSG’s attacking contacts in the first 45 minutes came in the central third, the lowest figure this Champions League season. This left Luis Enrique’s side dependent on Dembele’s supply and he spent the night searching for a ball he could never quite find.

Sebastian Stafford Bloor

Did PSG struggle with the pressure?

This game was considered perhaps the greatest PSG game ever at the Parc des Princes – or at least the greatest since 1995, when they faced AC Milan in the first semi-final of the Champions League.

Unsurprisingly, anticipation for this game in Paris was huge. Preparation for the game was all about creating an atmosphere comparable to last week’s atmosphere in Dortmund, when the home team’s Yellow Wall inspired the hosts to a 1-0 win.

The Ultras called for arms at the beginning of the week. Club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said he would have removed the seats for that game if it had been possible. That evening the stands were full almost an hour before kick-off and there was a lot of noise.

“We are Paris,” boomed over the tannoy. “You are the voice of millions.” Some Ultras had been moved to the Boulogne stand opposite the Ultras’ main residence in the Auteuil.


Mbappe shows his frustration during Tuesday’s game (Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

PSG channeled that energy from the stands early on, firing it into duels and driving the ball up the field through collective willpower alone. But then tension crept into the ranks. This is a very young team and the average age of their starting XI on the night was 24 years and 157 days. This was the youngest starting eleven in a Champions League semi-final since Arsenal in May 2009.

It showed. Luis Enrique wanted his team to take the pressure, but the longer the game went on, the more that bite and energy faded. The crowd pressed on, but PSG lacked their usual penetration and proved inaccurate in the final third with the last pass or cross, while also lacking pace in the game. Dortmund’s compact form was not stretched. As PSG watched the game, the strikers lacked composure when opportunities presented themselves.

You can blame it on bad luck – an aspect of which is highlighted by their six shots hitting the woodwork across both legs. But it also showed that they lacked a cool head in front of goal.

Luis Enrique wants this to be a learning experience for his young team. But it will feel particularly painful tonight because many in Paris were hoping and expecting a trip to Wembley.

Peter Rutzler

What did Luis Enrique say?

Luis Enrique said: “It was a It’s a close game, but honestly I think we have to win the game. We took 31 shots (we hit the woodwork) four times – football is so unfair sometimes.

“Congratulations to you. They are a great team and I hope they can get to the final and win it.”

What did Edin Terzic say?

Terzic told TNT Sport: “Proud when I have to find a word. It’s a very proud moment for us. The dream is not yet over.

“I think we suffered a lot, but we played a very good away game against a team that is so strong, fast and mobile up front. We won both games in the semi-final. That’s incredible.

“It was an outstanding performance. In the first half they were the better team, dominantly, but we had the biggest chance with Karim Adeyemi and it was a crucial moment for us to keep the faith high.”

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(Top photo: Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images)

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