Paris 2-0 Dortmund (agg: 3-2): Neymar leads Paris through
Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Article summary
First-half goals from Neymar and Juan Bernat turned the tie on its head as Paris booked a quarter-final spot.
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Article body
Paris overturned their first-leg defeat by Dortmund to seal a return to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.
The match at a glance
Paris were on top from the start against a Dortmund side content to soak up the pressure and hit them on the break. The visitors' game plan was torn up on 28 minutes, though, when Neymar escaped the attentions of Achraf Hakimi to stoop low and head in Ángel Di María's corner.
There was no let-up from Paris, who continued to press and took the lead for the first time in the tie when Juan Bernat applied a gorgeous touch to divert Pablo Sarabia's cross into the bottom corner. Dortmund were forced out of their shells, penning the hosts deeper and deeper inside their own half but Paris held on, Emre Can's late dismissal adding salt to Borussia wounds.
Man of the match: Juan Bernat (Paris)
Aitor Karanka, UEFA technical observer: "He defended really well against a very good winger in Jadon Sancho, and he capped it off with that crucial goal."
View from the stadium: Chris Burke, Paris reporter
The omens all looked negative in the lead-up to this game, but Paris came through with barely a fright in the end. Mature, calm and professional, they got the first-half goals they craved to take control of the tie and worked hard from front to back to stifle Dortmund after the break, each of their big-name players rolling up their sleeves to help out. This time, Thomas Tuchel's decisions all paid dividends as the French champions finally lifted their round of 16 curse.
Visitors' view: Steffen Potter, Dortmund reporter
Dortmund's game plan was not wrong – the idea of relying on quick counterattacks provided them with their best chances before the interval. Conceding from another set piece and gifting Paris another goal after a poor ball ultimately led to their demise on a day when none of their players were at their best.
Reaction
Thomas Tuchel, Paris coach: "This team is reliable. It was necessary to show that. For me, it was a pleasure to be coach today. We've been winning for the last 28 games. This team only lost that one game at Dortmund, with a one-goal difference, and people were talking as if we were fourth in Ligue 1 and knocked out of the cups. Everyone wants to be a critic – it's easy."
Juan Bernat, Paris defender: "We started the game well. We held out well at the end and now we're through – it was a special evening. The welcome and the noise we heard when we arrived at the stadium gave us strength."
Thilo Kehrer, Paris defender: "It was an exciting match right until the end. We got the result we needed and are very happy about that. The people in this city, the fans, the staff have been waiting a long time for this success in the Champions League. It's not the end for us – it's a beginning."
Lucien Favre, Dortmund coach: "At the beginning it was difficult, they pressed very high. We played OK and weren't bad. The second half was also not bad. We lacked the right final decision, that final pass or the pass before that. We played a high line and had problems finding gaps. We also conceded two unnecessary goals."
Mats Hummels, Dortmund defender: "It's difficult to say what went wrong. Both teams were limited to a few chances. Conceding from the corner [for Neymar's goal] must never happen, and the second goal was a bit of bad luck. We ... never manged to really threaten their goal. We had three, four half-chances. Paris did not have much more, but they didn't need to."
Key stats
- Paris are through to the quarter-finals for the sixth time, more than any other French side. They bowed out at the last-16 stage in each of the last three seasons.
- For the first time, Paris progressed to the next stage of the UEFA Champions League after losing the first leg of a knockout tie.
- Neymar has been directly involved in 38 goals in 28 home UEFA Champions League appearances (20 for Barcelona, eight for Paris), scoring 26 and claiming 12 assists. The Brazilian has never lost a home game in the competition (W25 D3).
- Four of Bernat's five goals for Paris have come in the UEFA Champions League.
- PSG have scored at least one goal in each of their last 32 UEFA Champions League matches, two short of Real Madrid's competition record set between May 2011 and April 2014.
- Paris beat Dortmund in European competition for the first time, having previously drawn twice and lost once.
- Axel Witsel, 31, made his 100th appearance in UEFA club competition. He is the 169th player to reach the milestone and sixth Belgian.
Line-ups
Paris: Navas; Kehrer, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Bernat; Paredes (Kouassi 90+2), Gueye; Di María (Kurzawa 79), Sarabia (Mbappé 64), Neymar; Cavani
Dortmund: Bürki; Piszczek, Hummels, Zagadou; Hakimi, Emre Can, Witsel (Reyna 71), Guerreiro; Sancho, Haaland, Hazard (Brandt 68)