After two weeks of tense Champions League quarterfinals, the semifinalists have been revealed. Paris Saint-Germain, Atlético Madrid, Arsenal, and Bayern Munich all still stand a chance of winning the season’s biggest trophy. How did they get here, and who among them will make it to the grand finale?
PSG faced Liverpool at the latter’s home stadium. The French team came into the game with a two-goal advantage, and although it took them quite a while, they managed to increase it to four throughout the evening. Ousmane Dembélé was the author of both goals, one in the 72nd, and the second in the 91st minute. All in all, the match was a disappointment for Liverpool, who watched their dreams go up in flames without having scored even once in either leg of the quarterfinal.
At the same time, Atlético hosted FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano. Blaugrana had a two-goal deficit coming into the game, but managed to level the playing field in only 24 minutes. Despite the great start, the match unraveled from there. Ademola Lookman scored soon after, tipping the scales in Atlético’s favor. Adding insult to injury, Barcelona received their second red card in the two quarterfinals, this time with Eric García being sent off the field.
Barcelona won the game, but the 3-2 aggregate score put Atlético in the lead. Both legs of the fratricidal Spanish quarterfinal were riddled with refereeing controversies, leading Blaugrana to submit not one but two complaints to UEFA.
Arsenal had scored one goal in their first match against Sporting, and that was the only thing that led to the game finishing without going overtime. Throughout the 90 minutes, the score never budged. On top of that, each team only managed one shot on target. 0-0 was a rather representative score of the match.
The meeting between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid couldn’t have been more different. The German team had won the first quarterfinal game by one goal, but were rid of their small advantage in the very first minute. Taking advantage of Manuel Neuer’s mistake, Arda Güler opened the score and levelled the playing field. Bayern’s answer was quick, with Aleksandar Pavlović’s goal returning them to the advantageous position. Three more goals were scored in the first half, two by Real (Güler and Kylian Mbappé) and one by their opponents (Harry Kane).
The game was tied in the aggregate, and the action cooled off for the better part of the remaining 45 minutes. With less than five minutes of standard time on the clock, Eduardo Camavinga received a second yellow and a consequent red card for purposefully stalling the game. The decision to send him off the field was met with uproar from Real. The moment of chaos provided the perfect opportunity for Luis Díaz to score and put Bayern in the lead. The team then secured their win with Michael Olise’s 94th-minute goal.
In the semifinals, Arsenal will face Atlético, and PSG will go up against Bayern. The games between the first two teams could end up being, for the lack of a better word, underwhelming. They are both known, at least partially, for their defensive and less active style of play, as evidenced by Arsenal’s one-goal quarterfinal win. As they faced the proactive Barcelona with an advantage, Atlético also largely withdrew into their half of the field.
The two teams might end up proving me wrong, but I do think that the matches held between them have the potential not to be the most exciting. Out of the two of them, I would bet on Arsenal making it through to the finale.
When it comes to Bayern and PSG, the matches are not likely to fall into the traps I have outlined in relation to the other teams. The score could go either way. Both teams are at the top of their respective leagues, although Bayern by a much larger margin. The Germans have also done significantly better in the group phase of the Champions League. At the same time, something that should not be dismissed is that PSG are the reigning champions.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see either team move into the finale, although I’m leaning slightly more towards Bayern. They are on a great streak following their two wins against Real and are sure to go the extra mile in the semifinals.
The four semifinals will be played between April 28th and May 6th. With the tensions high after the controversial quarterfinals, they might end up blowing the fuse of many fans, no matter the results.
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