Paris St Germain have secured a place in the Champions League quarter-finals after beating Liverpool on penalties. They beat Liverpool 1-0 at Anfield after losing with the same number at home.
Ousmane Dembele scored after 12 minutes, despite a strong start at Anfield. Before the match, billboards displayed UEFA's slogan: "Unforgettable Nights". Of course, this is a smart marketing move, but this message has been proven to be true. Liverpool and PSG created an emotional encounter that will certainly go down in the history of the Champions League.
Mohamed Salah missed a number of chances early in the match. This opens up an opportunity for Dembele to finish from close range after a misunderstanding between goalkeeper Alisson Becker and Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate. Throughout the match, Alisson - the standout player in Paris last week - once again had some excellent saves. PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma also made a great effort to block Luis Diaz's header.
Liverpool were unlucky to see come on as a substitute Jarell Quansah hit the post and Dominik Szoboszlai also had an attempt denied for offside. But PSG deserved to win both matches after what they have shown.
PSG's focus after this victory was Dembele and Donnarumma. One wants to make up for his mistake after missing many scoring opportunities in Paris last week. The other wants to make up for his mistake that cost the home team last week.
After facing a lot of criticism after the first leg against Liverpool, Dembele and Donnarumma turned things around to become PSG's pillars in the second leg.
Dembele scored a valuable goal and was a constant threat to Liverpool's defence. At the other end of the pitch, Donnarumma made just three saves in 120 minutes, a sign that Liverpool were not really creating many chances. However, it was in the penalty shootout that he wrote his story. Donnarumma's two excellent saves helped PSG win.
Big matches belong to big players and at Anfield, Dembele and Donnarumma are not only big, they are also great for PSG fans.
Matches between quality teams like Liverpool and PSG are often decided in midfield. For the two teams that need to control to get the match into the right position, winning in midfield is the key. And once again, PSG's midfield is superior.
The calmness of Vitinha, Joao Neves and Fabian Ruiz when holding the ball, their movement and passing are all very special, even under pressure. Neves are just 20, Vitinha are 25, and they have dominated both of their games against Liverpool. Notably, Vitinha touched the ball 136 times in the return match and successfully completed 103 out of 111 passes.
