The semi-final between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich kept all its promises on Tuesday evening at the Parc des Princes. In a high-stakes match, the two teams went blow for blow, offering some play. A memorable evening which ended with a victory for the reigning European champions with a score of 5 to 4. But everything is still possible during the return leg in Munich on May 6 at the Allianz Arena. The Bavarians are aware of this, they who believe they still have every chance of reaching the final of the most beautiful European competition.
The 5-2, a turning point
Trailing by one goal after this first leg, they can overthrow this Parisian team. Moreover, the French champions are aware of this. This Thursday, L’Equipe reveals that Luis Enrique’s players were proud but humble after Tuesday evening’s success. Above all, they were very impressed by the performance of Michael Olise, Luis Diaz and their teammates. It is the same in the management ranks. Yesterday, RMC Sport however, clarified that the Ile-de-France leaders had some small regrets after the reduction of the score of the Munich residents, going from 5-2 to 5-4 in a few minutes.
On the other side of the Rhine, we returned this Thursday to the moment when everything changed. Bild explains that the Bayern Munich players were stung and annoyed at the time of the Parisians’ celebrations on the fifth goal. This moment galvanized Vincent Kompany’s troops and motivated them more than ever to come back to score. “PSG coach Luis Enrique burst out with joy, which all Bayern fans did not fail to notice! The atmosphere was also jubilant among the Parisians on the pitch. Was it because they already thought they had reached the final in Budapest (May 30)?
The Parisian celebrations have not passed
Bild talks about “catastrophic and premature celebration of PSG”. After the match, Max Eberl admitted that this had motivated the players: “after the 5-2, the PSG players congratulated themselves as if they had already won the title and were leaving for Budapest. Coming back to score in such an atmosphere is something special for me. This is what defines the character of this team. And we’ll need it in the second leg, that’s for sure. We come home, down by one goal, and we know what we have to do. The Allianz Arena is a fortress! »
Manuel Neuer also spoke of this moment, he who re-motivated the troops after the 5-2. “After this fifth goal conceded, I went to see a few players. I believed that we could still achieve something, or at least improve the result. I told them that we had to play our game, that we had to believe in it. It’s just a few words, but it’s also about body language: showing that you’re not going to collapse or give up now.” The message got across well. Bayern Munich were able to close the gap and can still qualify for the final.
