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The final of the UEFA Champions League is just 90 minutes for two teams, as the San Siro and Parc des Princes play host to thrilling return-leg semifinal matches pitting Paris Saint-Germain against Arsenal and Inter Milan against Barcelona, respectively.
On the evening of Tuesday 6 May, Inter Milan will welcome Barcelona to the north of Italy for the return game of their thrilling tie. The teams played out a barn-burning 3-3 draw in Catalunya, which set up this clash perfectly.
“Next week, Inter can’t just defend,” said Barca manager Hansi Flick. “They have to try and score too. It’s the semifinal of the Champions League, and the four best teams in Europe are there.
“We play with style and confidence, and we know what we can do. We have 90 minutes next week, and hopefully that’s enough to get to the final. That’s our goal, and we will fight for it.”
Inter manager Simone Inzaghi is looking forward to the return clash on home soil: “There were excellent moments today but times where we suffered too. We were facing a great team in the form of Barcelona. But now they know they’re facing a great side in Inter next week and in Milan.”
The evening of Wednesday 7 May sees the focus switch to the French capital, where Paris Saint-Germain hold a 1-0 advantage over Arsenal ahead of their clash at the Parc des Princes.
Ousmane Dembélé scored the only goal of the first leg match at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta knows that turning the tie around away from home will be tough but remains optimistic: “If you want to be in the Champions League final, you have to do something special. We have to do something special in Paris to be there.”
Man of the Match in the first leg, Vitinha, wants to see PSG repeat the strength and spirit of their first-leg showing in London: “I’m happy for the result but, more importantly, for this side’s performance. We showed true team spirit, attacking and defending together when it was necessary, too. That’s what matters. We really showed our desire to reach the final. We need to repeat the performance in Paris.”
The two aggregate winners from the semifinals will progress to the final, which will be held at the Bayern Munich Arena in Germany on Saturday, 31 May.
