First modification: 14/04/2021 – 00:38Last modification: 14/04/2021 – 00:37
–
Paris (AFP)
Paris SG and Chelsea became the first semifinalists of the 2020-2021 Champions League on Tuesday and although both achieved it by losing and making good their triumphs in the first leg, the Parisians sweated blood to eliminate Bayern and the ‘Blues’ were barely troubled by Porto.
PSG took revenge for the final lost last season and eliminated Bayern Munich despite losing 1-0 at the Parc des Princes, thanks to their 3-2 win last week in Germany.
A new target from Eric Choupo-Mouting (40), a former PSG player and already a top scorer in the first leg, gave Bayern Munich a win without a prize, which says goodbye to the competition they won in 2020.
Funny what happened in this tie: Bayern were better in the first leg and lost and PSG did not deserve to be defeated on Tuesday.
Although “the best chances both in the first leg and in the return were for us,” claimed the Argentine coach of Paris SG Mauricio Pochettino.
The Rosario, however, conceded: “Although we won there, maybe Bayern was a little better. There are incredible circumstances that cannot be explained, that is football. There is no kind of revenge. We are focused on helping PSG achieve its objective”.
The Brazilian star Neymar was the protagonist of the Parisian attack, with four clear chances to score in the first half, but in two he ran into the wood (minutes 37 and 39) and in another two with Manuel Neuer (28 and 34).
– “Let’s go for everything,” says Neymar –
Qualifying made Neymar forget the missed chances: “I am very happy despite the defeat. We were facing a great team, the European champions. We have reached the goal, to return to the semifinals. Now we are going for everything.”
In the second half, already with an advantage on the scoreboard for Bayern, the Germans turned on Keylor Navas’ goal and the Austrian David Alaba was close to turning the tie with a powerful shot that touched the post (47 ).
Kylian Mbappé scored in a house-brand ride that would have given the Parisians peace of mind, but the referee annulled the goal for offside (77).
The final stretch was an ordeal for the local side, but this time the suffering had a prize: the third qualification for the semifinals of PSG in the Champions League (after 1995 and 2019).
“Bayern was the best team in the two games together,” estimated Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick, lamenting the lack of “punch” in attack by his team, referring to the absence of his striker Robert Lewandowski, who he missed the tie due to injury.
In Seville, the same scenario as the first leg due to health restrictions in Portugal due to the pandemic, Porto took the 1-0 victory against Chelsea, but the Chilean goal of the Iranian Medhi Taremi came in discount (90 + 4 ), too late to have disturbed Chelsea.
– Porto without hitting –
Above all because, despite the fact that Porto needed at least two goals (and not to receive any) to have forced the extension, the Portuguese team lacked a punch and their first shot between the three sticks, the work of Taremi, arrived after the hour. game (65).
“We have done what we had to do. It was a very tough fight, maybe it wasn’t nice to watch on television, but from the sidelines it was a very intense match, very fast,” said the ‘Blues’ coach Thomas after the game. Tuchel, who considered the classification of his team “deserved”.
“We have had more chances and we have played better than our rival, but we lacked efficiency in attack,” said Porto coach Sergio Conceiçao.
Chelsea did not qualify for the semifinals of the top European club competition since 2014, two years after having won the ‘Champions’ for the first and only time.
A spectacular change for a team that seemed dead in January, when the club decided to dismiss Franck Lampard, with the team far from the top in the Premier League (it is currently 5th and fighting to qualify for the next Champions League) and it seemed without much future in Europe.
In the semifinals, Paris SG will face the winner of the tie between Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, with an advantage for the English after 2-1 in the first leg.
The rival for Chelsea will have more European pedigree: Real Madrid (13 titles) or Liverpool (6). Madrid will defend 3-1 in the first leg on Wednesday at Anfield.
© 2021 AFP
–
