3 reasons why PSG could end their long wait for Champions League glory this season
Ever since their huge investment in Paris-Saint Germain, the club hierarchy have had their eyes firmly set on becoming European champions but despite achieving near-immortality in the French domestic game, the Champions League has proved a height too far for them to reach.
It is for the Champions League that they have spent billions in the last seven years but the club are yet to make it to the semifinal, while having to suffer the ignominy of being eliminated at the round-of-16 stage for three seasons consecutively.
The 3-2 aggregate victory over Borussia Dortmund saw them progress to the last eight for the first time since 2016 and PSG would fancy their chances of going all the way and breaking their duck in the Champions League.
Here, we shall be highlighting three reasons why the French side could finally lay their hands on the Champions League this season.
#3 Neymar staying fit during the knockout rounds
When PSG triggered Neymar’s release clause at Barcelona to shatter the transfer record and make him the most expensive player in history, the club believed that they had found the missing piece of the puzzle to propel them to continental glory.
The Brazilian had proved his mettle in four years at Camp Nou and was widely regarded as the third best player in the world, while his performance in the remontada where he almost single-handedly helped the Blaugrana overturn a 4-0 deficit to PSG must have increased his allure to the French side.
However, three years into his contract and the former Santos man has yet to deliver on his promise and although two league titles have been won, including a domestic treble in his first year, it is for his Champions League prowess that he was signed.
Neymar’s record of 69 goals from 89 matches for PSG in all competitions is far from disappointing and he was named French Player of the Year in 2018 but none of these are entirely surprising given the difference in quality between his side and the rest of the competition in France.
The 27-year-old played just one of PSG’s first four knockout fixtures in the Champions League, with injuries ruling him out of the other three and it came as no surprise that his side were roundly embarrassed in their eliminations by Real Madrid and Manchester United.
This season, he has still had injury concerns but thankfully for the club, he was fit in time to partake in the knockout fixtures and he played a starring role in the elimination of Dortmund, scoring the crucial away goal and putting a man-of-the-match display in the return leg in Paris.
With Neymar in top form, only a handful of players are as decisive as him and for as long as he remains fit, PSG would fancy their chances of going all the way in the Champions League.
#2 Most of the other big guns are not firing on all cylinders
The hierarchical nature of football means that a select group of clubs are perennially installed as favourites in whatever tournament they partake in, with their history and financial stability giving them access to the best players.
This season is no different but unlike years gone by, most of the elite sides are not entirely convincing and are yet to hit the normal heights expected.
Barcelona have had a stop-and-start season that led to the sack of Ernesto Valverde and were lucky to leave the Estadio San Paolo with a draw against Napoli and the same can be said about Real Madrid who face an uphill task to qualify against Manchester City.
Defending champions Liverpool have already been knocked out and their conquerors Atletico Madrid have been disappointing domestically, while Juventus would have to overturn a first leg deficit to Olympique Lyon if they are to remain in the competition.
The one elite side who are still performing at an optimum is Bayern Munich and in light of the struggles currently being experienced by most of the other big sides, this could finally be the year when PSG get their hands on the Champions League.
#1 Wrapping up the league title early could enable them focus entirely on the Champions League
Expectedly, PSG have once again raced clear of the rest of the chasing pack in the French Ligue 1 and currently boast a commanding 12-point advantage with a game in hand and just nine rounds of matches to go.
This makes them dead-on favourites to make it a three-peat domestically and they can mathematically become league champions in the coming weeks, giving Thomas Tuchel the impetus to rest most of his marquee players especially Neymar to prevent injuries and keep them fresh for the latter stages of the Champions League.
By contrast, most of the other contenders have fierce battles domestically, with Juventus, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich all holding very slim advantages at the top an their title races are expected to go down to the wire.
This means that there would be hardly any margin for error for them and their best players would be forced to play all matches in the home run of the season, increasing the chances of injuries and fatigue, which ultimately plays to PSG’s advantage.