On the large, rectangular table in the middle of the dressing room at the Parc des Princes, Kylian Mbappe and Presnel Kimpembe jump as hard as they can. The water is thrown at them, Sergio Rico joins them, as well as Idrissa Gueye and Rafinha. Other players and staff members hit the table in rhythm as they chanted, “We’re in the semis! We’re, we’re, we’re in the semis!”
Marquinhos, in his immaculate white hood, is there too. He was injured and missed a 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich on Tuesday – a good enough result to see Paris Saint-Germain progress to the next leg of the Champions League away goals – but I heard his voice from the stands , encouraging his teammates.
Leandro Paredes, one of the leaders of this team, continues to shout: “Let’s go! Let’s go!” every time he hugs a teammate. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the president of PSG, greeted each player back in the dressing room and then congratulated each and every one of them a second time, bypassing the place, like Leonardo, the sporting director.
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Manager Mauricio Pochettino has to leave to fulfill all his post-match media duties, but the huge smile on his face says it all. This is a happy dressing room very happy dressing. PSG is in the semifinals of the Champions League for the second consecutive season and is slowly but surely consolidating its place among the top European clubs and the perennial competitors of the Champions League.
This time, they got there on the right track – over two legs, defeating Lionel Messi first and now Bayern, the World and European Champion. Each time, it was a real battle, a nail biting scenario. But in both respects, what prevailed was the spirit and solidarity of Paris Saint-Germain.
Of course, Kylian Mbappe and Keylor Navas were the heroes of the two games against Barcelona and Munich. Remarkably, the Costa Rican goalkeeper has not yet lost a two-legged tie in the Champions League in which he played. And Neymar, voted on Tuesday, was again the star of the show, even if he should have taken at least one of the chances he created.
Paris passed, however, because they played as a team in the first place. This is the message that Pochettino told his players from day one: we can have great individuals like Neymar, Mbappe or Angel Di Maria, but we can only go far if we do this together, otherwise it will not be possible.
At the break in the first leg, when Bayern dominated the game, he told people to stay calm and that they would score again and win. It happened. On Tuesday, Pochettino told them they would be able to cope with the pressure in the second half after Bayern took the lead just before the break. And they did.
This PSG team won because it became a definition of mental and collective strengths, with special talents within the group.
Of course, they benefited from all the players without Bayern (Robert Lewandowski, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka), but the Parisians also had problems. They did not have Marco Verratti or Alessandro Florenzi for any of the matches, while Marquinhos lasted only 30 minutes in the first round and is now out until the first round of the semifinals. Paredes, whom Pochettino turned into such an important part of the team, was suspended for the game last week.
Paris had their problems, but they rose above them to ensure that their adventure in the Champions League would continue. Before the second stage, Joshua Kimmich – probably the best no. 6 in the world – said he is “convinced that Bayern will pass, because they are the best team in the world”.
Let’s just say that these comments did not go unnoticed, especially by Neymar, who used them as additional motivation.
And when Daniele Orsato, who was a referee in the Champions League final, PSG lost to the Germans eight months ago, blew for the last time on Tuesday night at the Parc des Princes, the Brazilian superstar celebrated with Paredes almost in front of Kimmich – – a scenario that Neymar said came to a draw.
“It’s funny, because I didn’t even celebrate to mess with him; he was more with Leo and I ended up celebrating with him. It was fate that brought me closer to [Kimmich]”Neymar said after the match.
There was an element of revenge on Tuesday night, even though no payer said so. The 2017 Remontada demons against Barcelona have now passed after the 16 finals of this season. The ghosts of the 2020 final against Bayern are gone now. Earlier this season, the team also sent bad memories against Manchester United in 2019, winning at Old Trafford.
It was a season of revenge for the Champions League for Paris, and now it can’t stop, even if Pochettino insists they are not the favorites to win it.