PSG show Lamine Yamal, Barcelona what it takes to become Champions League winners

BARCELONA, Spain -- As aboriginal statements successful the UEFA Champions League go, Paris Saint-Germain delivered a beauteous large 1 by beating Barcelona 2-1 connected Wednesday -- particularly considering they were without their stellar beforehand 3 of Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia done injury.

The signifier was acceptable for Lamine Yamal, who finished 2nd to Dembélé successful the Ballon d'Or past week, to marque it each astir him astatine the Olympic Stadium. He surely had his moments, and his conflict with near backmost Nuno Mendes was a changeless root of fascination. But erstwhile again, it was the squad ethos of Luis Enrique's PSG that shone done successful the extremity -- conscionable arsenic it did arsenic they won the contention past season.

Ferran Torres gave Barça the pb successful an enthralling archetypal half, but Senny Mayulu drew PSG level earlier halftime, and the French broadside was acold superior aft the break. Barça manager Hansi Flick amazingly paired Eric García and Pau Cubarsí astatine halfway back, and astatine times they were pulled astir by PSG's makeshift onslaught of Mayulu, Bradley Barcola and 17-year-old Ibrahim Mbaye. Given the vigor PSG showed precocious on, determination was much resignation than astonishment from the location fans erstwhile Gonçalo Ramos buried a 90th-minute winner.

The stadium emptied beauteous rapidly aft that, but for the 3,000 traveling French fans, who celebrated agelong aft the last whistle arsenic their players partied successful beforehand of them. Given the circumstances and the prime of opposition, this was a triumph that volition breed assurance successful the European champions -- if that is needed -- successful the lack of not conscionable Dembélé, Doué and Kvaratskhelia, but besides halfway backmost Marquinhos.

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Barça were besides missing players owed to injury. Goalkeeper Joan García, Raphinha, Read Entire Article