Paris and Milan to meet at the heart of Europe in another crunch UEFA Champions League final
Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan somewhat represent two footballing philosophies. Luis Enrique’s side have a possession-based approach, with fleet-footed creative players in the midfield areas and full-backs advanced very high up the pitch. Simone Inzaghi’s Inter are more measured and disciplined, with a strong steady core and excellent counter-attacking.
How will this one go, you wonder?
PSG will need more than flair and teamwork
Following the departures of marquee players like Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi, PSG underwent a significant transformation, with Enrique moulding a cohesive unit that emphasises teamwork over individual brilliance. The shift has paid dividends, with PSG on the brink of a treble.
However, PSG have also demonstrated a certain solidity on their journey to the final. Against Aston Villa they completely outplayed the English side in Paris but Villa Park provided a different kind of test. They had to show they were not brittle after Youri Tielemans and John McGinn overturned what had appeared to be a healthy lead, after Ezri Konsa added a third and brought Villa to within a goal’s distance with over half an hour to go, after Marcus Rashford tested Gianluigi Donnarumma’s elasticity. They had to hold their nerves as all of Birmingham bayed for blood, asked for more. Just one more.
In the final, that fortitude will be of immense, potentially history-defining importance.
Inter defence could play a key role
Inter Milan’s path to the final has been marked by dramatic comebacks and defensive solidity. Against Bayern at the San Siro, they held on as the Bavarians laid siege to their penalty area, pelting shot after shot. Vincent Kompany’s side were wasteful to some extent and didn’t do enough in some areas it could be argued – but there was something about watching Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez dragging themselves across the pitch, absolutely knackered but forging on; something about seeing black-and-blue striped shirts crowd their penalty area, challenging, throwing themselves at every attempt at a shot, that just summed up the resilience of the Nerazzurri.
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In that semi-final against Barcelona they faced an even scarier forward line – although Robert Lewandowski was mostly absent – and while they conceded more in that game than they had in the entire competition, it was actually a testament to their nerve and capacity to endure, that they came out on top against Hansi Flick’s gung-ho attacking side, against Raphinha who has produced more than Ronaldinho did in his best season, against the great Lamine Yamal with the ability to conjure up something from nothing.
Key Stats
This will be Inter’s seventh appearance in a European Cup/Champions League final. They have won three (1964, 1965, 2010) and lost three (1967, 1972, 2023).
PSG are making their second appearance in a Champions League final. They lost their first in 2020 to Bayern Munich.
This is the first-ever competitive meeting between PSG and Inter.
Only Barcelona (174) have scored more goals than PSG (147) across Europe’s top five leagues this season, while PSG top the charts for shots (1,074), shots on target (450) and big chances (280).
Inter have kept more clean sheets (8) than any other team in the Champions League this season.
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Inter conceded more goals (6) against Barcelona in the semi-finals than they had in their previous games in this competition (5).
PSG are aiming for a treble after winning the Ligue 1 and Coupe de France, while Inter lost the Serie A to Napoli and dropped out of the Coppa Italia against AC Milan, with the Champions League their only remaining hope of a trophy.
When PSG manager Luis Enrique won the Champions League with Barcelona in 2015, he faced an Italian side, Juventus. The match ended 3-1 for Enrique’s side and they also won a treble that year.
Teams news and predicted XI
PSG’s leading goalscorer this season Ousmane Dembele is back to full fitness after injury concerns in the last two rounds. He will be playing through the centre as usual. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is certain to start on the left and Desire Doue will probably start on the right, although Enrique does retain the option to start Bradley Barcola who has both more goals and more assists than Doue this season.
There are no injury concerns for the Parisians.
Predicted starting XI (4-3-3): Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes; Neves, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Doue, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia.
Champions League Final: 5 Players Who Could Decide PSG vs Inter
Inter’s attack will be spearheaded once more by Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez, who are rugged and have excellent hold-up play. On the right Denzel Dumfries, superb against Barcelona, will be looking to do similar damage to PSG.
The Italians are likely to be without defender Benjamin Pavard, who was unavailable against Barcelona and has also missed the last four games. Yan Bisseck was substituted early in Inter’s final game against Como with a knee concern, but it seemed to be more of a precaution and unlikely to keep him out. Midfielder Piotr Zielinski is a doubt with a calf problem, but he might be fit enough to make the bench.
Valentin Carboni remains sidelined with a torn ACL.
Predicted starting XI (3-5-2): Sommer; Bisseck, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Martinez, Thuram.
Match Prediction
PSG are much better on the ball than Inter Milan but so were Barcelona and the Italians outscored them in 200+ minutes of football. Luis Enrique’s side will also need more than flair and creativity to win a European trophy – they will need grit, determination and heart.
Their manager’s experience of playing a final against an Italian side and winning the treble in 2015 could be extremely useful here. On the other hand, Inter have very experienced players and a tendency to destabilise teams. If they were to score first, it could be difficult for the Parisians to recover.
PSG 0-1 Inter Milan
