Paris Saint-Germain secured a slim advantage over Arsenal with a 1-0 victory in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final tie on Tuesday night, thanks to a crucial early strike by Ousmane Dembele.
Dembele’s goal came just minutes after kickoff at the Emirates Stadium, and Luis Enrique’s men held firm for the remainder of the match to keep the Gunners at bay.
The French side will now return to the Parc des Princes for the second leg on May 7 as favourites to advance to the final, where they could face either Barcelona or Inter Milan in pursuit of their maiden Champions League title.
However, PSG’s record of dramatic eliminations in Europe suggests caution is still warranted. The result marked Arsenal’s first loss in 18 home European matches, delivering a harsh setback in their pursuit of a historic first Champions League trophy.
Manager Mikel Arteta, who had earlier described his team’s semi-final journey as a “beautiful story,” now faces the challenge of turning the page with renewed hope.
Having dismantled defending champions Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals, Arsenal struggled to replicate their high-flying performance, despite an electric atmosphere at kickoff. As the players huddled in the tunnel before taking the field, Declan Rice was heard urging teammates to give everything, shouting, “If we don’t have the ball, we die!” Meanwhile, a motivational video from Arteta played on the stadium screens, calling on fans to lift the energy.
Still, PSG—who had already dispatched Liverpool and Aston Villa earlier in the tournament and staged a comeback win against Manchester City in the group phase—came prepared. Their only prior defeat to an English club in this campaign came against Arsenal in October, when Dembele was absent due to disciplinary reasons.
This time, the French forward wasted no time making his presence felt, scoring just four minutes into the match. After initiating a counterattack from midfield, Dembele passed to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and surged into the box to meet a return ball, which he expertly slotted in off the post.
PSG pushed for a second, with Marquinhos heading Achraf Hakimi’s cross too close to Arsenal keeper David Raya, while Kvaratskhelia had a strong penalty appeal denied after a tussle with Jurrien Timber.
The Georgian winger continued to threaten, forcing Raya into a sharp save, while Dembele nearly doubled his tally with a slick pass to Desire Doue, whose low drive was kept out at full stretch.
Arsenal’s best first-half chance came through Gabriel Martinelli, who latched onto a brilliant pass from Myles Lewis-Skelly, only to be denied by an excellent stop from Gianluigi Donnarumma.
The Gunners thought they had levelled shortly after halftime when Mikel Merino headed home from a Declan Rice free-kick. But VAR ruled the goal out for offside, snuffing out early second-half celebrations.
The home side kept pressing. Leandro Trossard came close after being played through by Rice, but Donnarumma once again came to PSG’s rescue with a spectacular save.
With momentum swinging Arsenal’s way, PSG opted to slow down the pace, aiming to regain control. Their strategy nearly paid off when Bradley Barcola found space through the middle, but dragged his effort wide with only the goalkeeper to beat. Luis Enrique was left in disbelief again when Goncalo Ramos smashed the ball against the crossbar from close range in the closing stages.
