Paris, May 07, 2024, IANS
Paris, May 7 (IANS) The UEFA Champions League is back as the semi-finalists gear up and get set to try and book their place in the final of Europe’s premier football competition. It will be Borussia Dortmund, who travel to the Parc De Princes on Tuesday (Wednesday as per IST) to take on the daunting Paris Saint-Germain on their hunting grounds.
Dortmund head into the game with a slender 1-goal advantage thanks to the goal by Niclas Fullkrug in the 36th minute of the first leg which was the only goal on the night although PSG did come agonizingly close to scoring on multiple occasions. Kylian Mbappe and Achraf Hakimi both hit opposite ends of the woodwork but could not find the back of the net.
PSG is no stranger to adversity, as they were in a similar pickle in the quarterfinal stages of the competition as well. The Parisian side trailed by a goal heading into the second leg against FC Barcelona at Camp Nou but managed to overcome the deficit dominantly as they won 1-4 on the night.
The stakes have never been higher, especially with this being the last season that the tournament is being played in the traditional 32-team format and every team has their eyes on the trophy in hopes of securing it before the inevitable change takes effect next season.
Dortmund’s last trip to the Champions League final was at the iconic Wembley Stadium in London, which is also the venue for the 2023/24 final. One of Kylian Mbappe or Marco Reus will also be playing their last Champions League game with their respective clubs.
PSG will also be without Lucas Hernandez on the night following a cruciate ligament injury he suffered in the first leg. Along with him, Kurzawa, Kimpembe, and Rico will also be unavailable. Dortmund, on the other hand, will see Sebastian Haller back on the bench. It is likely, that the German team will be looking to field the same playing XI as in the first leg.
"The aim isn’t to win by two goals, but to win, if you think you have to score two goals that seems like a big target. We just want to play and score. If we score in the 89th minute, it will carry on. We don’t need to score right away, we just want to win the game," said PSG manager Louis Enrique in the press conference ahead of the much-awaited tie.
"We showed a good game last week, which gave us that little lead. But that performance probably won’t be enough to get us into the final, we have to do everything together tomorrow, with a good plan, with a good idea. Paris will certainly do better than last week. We want to earn this ticket to the final. We'll tackle that together tomorrow," said Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic in the press conference leading up to the all-important game.