To this date, the best match that I have watched has been the 2014 Champions League quarter-finals match between Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain. The game in it of itself wasn’t exceptionally thrilling. It was, however, the first Champions League match that I saw in person.
Everything about the day was memorable. From the moment we stepped onto the Paris Métro, the chanting of the PSG supporters began. I couldn’t really make out the direct translation, but it struck me to hear how in sync all the supporters were. Collectively, they were a single body – chanting hymns and stomping their feet to the beat. Individually, however, each fan dressed wearing the faded jerseys of their favorite players who were already long into retirement. The other commuters – families, couples, businessmen and women – continued on with their conversations, desensitized to the spectacle that I was soaking in so enthusiastically.
After arriving at the Parc des Princes ahead of the match, my family and I heard the traveling Chelsea fans before we saw them. I had originally thought the Parisians were rowdy, but they dwarfed in comparison to the Londoners. Perhaps only the truest of the Blues were willing and able to make it out all the way out to Paris on a Wednesday night.
That night in the stadium, however, only the PSG fans could be heard. Ezequiel Lavezzi, the Argentine winger, put in a volley at the beginning of the match to put PSG up front in the 3rd minute. Eden Hazard converted a penalty for the Blues in the 27th to put two teams level. An apparent hamstring injury in the second half to star PSG forward, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, couldn’t put a damper on the unrelenting buzz from the stands. A David Luiz own goal in the 61st from a poorly cleared PSG corner kick saw PSG go 2-1 up. Javier Pastore replaced his Argentinean teammate Lavezzi in the 85th minute and produced a bit of Messi-esque dribbling magic from the corner flag before slotting a near-post left-footed strike past Petr Cech in stoppage time. The stadium was electric.
Going into the second-leg match, PSG found itself in a solid position to advance into the semi-finals. With five minutes left in the Stamford Bridge, PSG was down 1-0 after a first-half goal by Andre Schürrle. If the result stood, PSG would advance. In the 87th minute, Demba Ba snuck in a shot from close range to send Chelsea through into the semi-finals on away goals. The goal sparked an iconic moment of then Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho racing down the touchline to celebrate with his players.
It seems that PSG has a rather unfortunate reputation in the Champions League for poor second-leg performances. The most infamous, perhaps in all of Champions League history, was the matchup against Barcelona in the 2016/17 season. PSG stunned Barcelona with a 4-0 win at the Parc des Princes in the first leg, putting the Spanish giants in danger of failing to qualify for the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in a decade. In the second-leg at the Camp Nou, Barcelona faced a seemingly insurmountable challenge. No team before had ever come back from a 4 goal deficit to win a Champions League tie. Barcelona’s response? A 6-1 crushing victory including two goals in extra-time. If you haven’t watched the highlights yet, you can at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joOgt7zN6Aw. The match is widely regarded as the greatest comeback in Champions League history.
More recently, PSG drew Manchester United in the Round of 16 of the 2018/19 Champions League. The first-leg marked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first loss as interim manager. Not only was it a 2-0 defeat at home at the Old Trafford, but star midfielder Paul Pogba was sent off for two consecutive yellows, meaning he couldn’t play in the second-leg match in Paris. Other key players including Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial sustained injuries and would miss out as well. Manchesdefeat at home.ter’s response? A 3-1 victory including a penalty in the 94th minute converted by Marcus Rashford. Manchester is the first team in the UEFA Champions League to win a knockout round tie following a two-goal opening-leg
To all Les Parisians out there, the next time your team secures a first-leg victory in the Champions League, it might be worth considering saving your celebrations until after the final whistle of the second-leg.
Relevant Readings:
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/26811631
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/26914647
- https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=1944120.html
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/38962318
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/39152666
- https://www.skysports.com/football/man-utd-vs-psg/403921
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/47461886
