Paris Saint-Germain beat Arsenal 2-1 at home to take their Champions League semifinal 3-1 on aggregate.
Paris Saint-Germain weathered one attack after another and showed remarkable adaptability to hold off and defeat an inspired Arsenal 2-1 to reach the Champions League final.
Deprived of the ball possession they so often enjoy, PSG looked in trouble early on but found the right answers to hurt the Gunners in the match on Wednesday. They relied on counter-attacking football and an excellent Gianluigi Donnarumma to prevail, advancing 3-1 on aggregate.
PSG reached the final of Europe’s elite tournament for the second time in five years. They will take on Inter Milan on May 31 after the three-time champion defeated Barcelona 7-6 on aggregate in one of the greatest semifinals in the competition’s history.
PSG had lost to Borussia Dortmund at this stage last year and was beaten by Bayern Munich in the 2020 final.
PSG broke the deadlock in the 27th minute from a set piece after the Arsenal defence cleared a free kick toward the edge of the area. The ball bounced back into the path of Fabian Ruiz, who smashed a stunning half-volley into the back of the net.
Achraf Hakimi curled in a precise finish in the 72nd minute to make it 2-0 on the night before Bukayo Saka pulled one back for the Gunners.
The England forward then spurned an open goal minutes later and, with it, the last real chance for a comeback to truly be mounted.
PSG had earlier missed the chance to double their lead from the penalty spot when Ferreira Vitinha had his kick saved by David Raya.
The kick itself was somewhat controversial in that VAR (video assistant referee) called back play when Myles Lewis-Skelly’s hand was innocuously clipped by Hakimi’s shot.