Champions League semi-final first leg was described as ‘pure madness’ and ‘football in its finest essence’
French media were in thrall to a victory hailed as a milestone performance, calling Paris Saint-Germain’s 100th win in the Champions League as “one of the finest” in the club’s history.
Bayern Munich will be hoping for a repeat of their goal bonanza when they host the holders in the semi-final return leg next Wednesday, with Tuesday’s 5-4 loss in Paris breaking the competition record for most goals in a last-four game.
L’Équipe described the performance as “a prodigious battle of astonishing intensity and technical quality”, highlighting the performances of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Ousmane Dembélé, who both scored twice. Its football commentator Vincent Duluc called the game a “whirlwind of every emotion and every impulse, contradictory and furious” and said it had “showcased the best of modern football”.
Le Parisien was similarly lavish in its praise, calling the encounter “pure madness, this pinnacle of art and culture, this museum of world wonders, this legend for the history books – all of this must be passed on, recounted, and recounted again”.
