After Inter-Barcelona was an instant classic, can PSG-Arsenal keep the Champions League drama rolling?
Happy Wednesday! Hopefully you've recovered from the nonstop action from Inter's 4-3 win over Barcelona on Tuesday because another UEFA Champions League semifinal is in store on Wednesday, when Paris Saint-Germain host Arsenal. I'm Pardeep Cattry with the latest with one last spot in the final up for grabs.
📺 Footy fixAll times U.S./Eastern
Wednesday, May 7🇪🇺 UCL: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Arsenal, 3 p.m. ➡️ CBS, Paramount+🇺🇸 Open Cup: San Jose Earthquakes vs. Sacramento Republic, 10:30 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network
Thursday, May 8🏴 Championship: Bristol City vs. Sheffield United, 2:55 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+🇪🇺 UEL: Bodo/Glimt vs. Tottenham Hotspur, 3 p.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Network, Paramount+🇪🇺 UEL: Manchester United vs. Athletic Bilbao, 3 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+🇪🇺 UECL: Chelsea vs. Djurgarden, 3 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+🇪🇺 UECL: Fiorentina vs. Real Betis, 3 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+
⚽ The Forward Line⚫🔵 Inter survive epic 13 goal semifinal tieAfter two legs, 210 minutes of play and 13 goals, Inter booked their spot in this month's Champions League final after beating Barcelona 7-6 on aggregate in one of the most memorable semifinal ties in the tournament's history.
The patterns of last week's first leg in Barcelona returned in almost identical form on Tuesday in Milan, where Inter took a 2-0 lead after starting the tie in the exact same way. This time, Lautaro Martinez broke the deadlock in the 21st minute before Hakan Calhanoglou's penalty ensured they had a two goal advantage by halftime. Barcelona leveled the score by the hour mark, though, with Eric Gracia and Dani Olmo to set up a back-and-forth final stretch. Barcelona took the lead for the first time in the whole series with Raphinha's 87th minute goal, putting the visitors within touching distance of their first Champions League final in a decade. Inter's Francesco Acerbi scored with 90 seconds left in regular time and forced the game to extra time, with Davide Frattesi scoring the final goal of the game in the 99th minute.
Simone Inzaghi's side will now play their second Champions League final in three years, putting them within touching distance of their first European title since their treble-winning season in 2009-10. It is also a notable accomplishment considering where Inter were when Inzaghi took the job in 2021. Fresh off their first Champions League knockout game in 11 years, the Italian manager took their talents to the next level with two trips to the final, as well as one Serie A title in between. Inzaghi's side prioritizes defense but as the semifinal tie against Barcelona demonstrated, they are clinical enough to know when to take their chances and emerged as the first team to truly get the better of the visitors' porous defense despite their vulnerabilities in the back all season. Their standout players of the tie perfectly encapsulate Inter's versatility – while Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram scored crucial goals, Denzel Dumfries was perhaps the star of the show with five goal contributions over both legs while goalkeeper Yann Sommer made 14 saves over both legs.
Though this season has been full of ups and downs, the semifinals offered an example of why Inter can go all the way. Inzaghi and company have assembled a group of top talents that are peaking at the right time – and perhaps for the last time, as Francesco Porzio writes.
- Porzio: "There is a feeling, unlike both [Paris Saint-Germain] and Arsenal, that this might be the last dance for some parts of the Inter roster, as their current roster will be drastically changed in the summer of 2025. It will happen, as club president Giuseppe Marotta already said before the Barcelona semifinal first leg, especially because Inter's new American owners, Oaktree, want to make the roster younger and still competitive in the near future. Some players will likely leave the team in the summer, regardless what happens in the final on May 31, but others will stay to make sure there is a future for this team, even if it will be probably added with some younger players."
While Inter have already booked their trip to Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal aim to do the same today with the second leg of their semifinal in the French capital. PSG have the 1-0 advantage after a victorious first leg in London last week, but the tight margins of the aggregate score mean another competitive match is likely in store.
Luis Enrique confirmed Tuesday that Ousmane Dembele, the scorer of the tie's lone goal so far, will be available for Wednesday's second leg after appearing to leave last week's match with a muscle injury. Enrique said Dembele had trained with the squad "for two days" in his pre-match press conference, a boost for a PSG side that is targeting their first Champions League final in five years. He will be key to PSG's plans on Wednesday, finding some of the best form of his career in Enrique's tactical set-up that has arguably made his side the hardest team to beat in Europe.
He admitted that as good as his side have been, this is merely the beginning of his evolution of the team into one that relies less on sheer starpower. It is why he believes sticking to the tactical strategy that got them here will be the only way to survive all of Arsenal's attempts to outdo them in Paris.
- Enrique: "It's normal in a construction process that in the first year there are still things to analyse, the second year is a year of clearer growth and confidence in our resources. Next year we will continue to excel on the biggest stages. … We're bound to suffer because our opponents don't have a favourable result. We need to match our performance as closely as possible in the first leg to win the return leg and stay true to our ideas."
As for Arsenal, this second leg comes with an existential question of sorts. Though they are among Europe's best defensive sides, the reason they are down one goal in this tie is not necessarily because their back line was poor in the first leg. They were rocked by PSG's press at the start and paid the price by conceding in the fourth minute, but their inability to score was perhaps the main takeaway after last week's match. The Gunners had their chances to bag the equalizer but their own wastefulness cost them at times, offering a stark reminder that they lack an out-and-out goalscorer.
That does not necessarily mean Arsenal will not find a way to score on Wednesday – Bukayo Saka's 11 goals and Leandro Trossard's 10 strikes this season indicate that they could be key players in Paris. The onus is on the Gunners' offense to actually show up, though, all while withstanding PSG's hard-to-beat pressing game – something no one has done since they hit their stride in the winter.
🔗 Top Stories⏪ Inter-Barcelona rewind: Here's a look at the top 10 moments from Inter's epic Champions League semifinal victory over Barcelona, plus Pedri's complaints about the refereeing after his side's elimination.
🏆 Leon out of CWC: Club Leon lost their appeal to re-join the field for the Club World Cup, with their spot now going to the winner of a one-game playoff between LAFC and Club America.
1️⃣1️⃣ NWSL's best: The Seattle Reign's Lynn Biyendolo and the San Diego Wave's Kenza Dali are amongst the standouts in the latest edition of the NWSL team of the week.
🔴🔵 Beckham's potential Barcelona move: David Beckham revealed that Manchester United accepted a deal to send him to Barcelona – but he scored them for Real Madrid just days later.
🇺🇸 World Cup task force: The Trump administration named Andrew Giuliani, the son of former New York mayor Rudy, as the executive director of their World Cup task force, while ex-U.S. Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro will act as a special advisor.
💰 The Back Line💵 Best bets- UEFA Europa League semifinals: Manchester United vs. Athletic Bilbao, Thursday, 3 p.m.💰 THE PICK: Both teams will not score (+104) – Manchester United carry a 3-0 advantage into the second leg, putting all of the pressure on Athletic Bilbao with a spot in the final at their home on the line. They can probably score at least once against a porous United back line and have the potential to ensure the Red Devils do not add to their own aggregate lead, which could make things nervy at Old Trafford. Even if just one team scores on Thursday, though, United's healthy aggregate advantage means they can survive a lot and still book a spot in the final.
For more picks, predictions, expert tips and the latest betting news, don't miss out on CBSSports.com's betting home page.
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