Dembele scores twice as PSG sweep past Liverpool to reach Champions League semi-finals
Liverpool's season-defining Champions League night turned into another painful Anfield exit as Ousmane Dembele's second-half double sent Paris Saint-Germain into the semi-finals with a 4-0 aggregate win on Tuesday. The defending champions barely broke sweat to close out a tie they had controlled from the opening leg in Paris.
Liverpool's comeback hopes die with VAR call
Trailing 2-0 from the first leg, Arne Slot's side needed an early goal and a performance to match those famous Anfield European nights. For 70 minutes they had neither. Liverpool pressed without real conviction, creating half-chances but never truly testing PSG goalkeeper Matvey Safonov.
The moment that summed up their evening arrived midway through the second half. A penalty was awarded, giving Liverpool a chance to breathe life into the tie, but a VAR review overturned the decision and with it went any remaining belief inside the stadium.
Dembele finishes the job
Dembele, who had wasted chances in both legs, finally found his finishing boots when it mattered. In the 72nd minute he picked up the ball on the edge of the area and swept a low left-footed shot past Giorgi Mamardashvili to make it 1-0 on the night and 3-0 on aggregate. The noise inside Anfield dropped instantly.
His second was clinical. Deep into stoppage time, PSG broke at speed and Dembele dispatched a precise finish into the bottom corner to complete a 2-0 win on the night. After the match, he told reporters: "I've wanted to show my football for a long time." He certainly picked his moment.
PSG closing in on history
The result means PSG are now two rounds from becoming only the second club after Real Madrid to retain the Champions League trophy in the modern era. They will face either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid in the semi-finals, with Bayern leading that tie 2-1 after last week's first leg at the Bernabeu.
For Liverpool, the focus shifts to salvaging what has been a difficult domestic campaign. The added blow of a serious-looking injury to Hugo Ekitike during the match compounds an evening Slot and his players will want to forget quickly.
Cricket Updates
