It felt routine in the end, the imperious champions of Europe through to another Champions League semi-final, Luis Enrique waving politely to the VIPs up in the Sir Kenny Dalglish stand having cavorted around Anfield following Paris Saint-Germain’s victory here last season, and a despondent Mohamed Salah bidding farewell to the Kop after his final European outing in a Liverpool shirt. But this was no routine departure from the Champions League for Liverpool.
Having exited the FA Cup quarter-final 4-0 and with a whimper, Arne Slot’s side exited the Champions League quarter-final 4-0 on aggregate but with a fight. For 72 minutes they also had hope, went toe-to-toe with the finest unit in Europe and kept on pressing despite the loss of Hugo Ekitiké to a potentially serious injury and a debatable decision to give – and then take away – a penalty with the capacity to change everything. It will be of little consolation to Slot and his team that, for the second successive season against PSG, taking the fight to Luis Enrique’s champions and putting the fright on them brought no reward at Anfield. The damage inflicted in Paris last week proved irrepairable.
Ousmane Dembélé, so wasteful in the first leg at Parc des Princes, put the quarter-final beyond any doubt with a clinical late finish to puncture belief in another famous European comeback at Anfield. PSG held their nerve in the face of Liverpool’s intensity and their class prevailed in the closing stages. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and the substitute Bradley Barcola combined for a second time to enable Dembélé to double the punishment in stoppage time. For Liverpool, it was a familiar case of failing to capitalise when in the ascendancy.
There was a period of silence before kick-off as Liverpool remembered the 97 fans who were unlawfully killed at Hillsborough on the eve of the 37th anniversary of the disaster. It was observed impeccably until being broken, unbelievably, by a shout for Liverpool from the home section. Black armbands were worn by both teams and Slot used his programme notes to question why a Hillsborough Law has still not been introduced, almost two years into a Labour government that promised one before it was elected.
On the field he tasked the expensively assembled but rarely seen forward line of Alexander Isak, Ekitiké and Florian Wirtz with delivering a goal threat that was nonexistent in Paris. The trio had played together for a combined total of 88 minutes following their arrivals for a potential £320m last summer. They produced another 27 before injury struck again.
Slot’s selection – with Salah benched for the second successive game against PSG – almost succeeded. PSG remained dangerous and dominant in possession yet Liverpool caused the European champions more problems in the opening exchanges than throughout a one-sided first leg. When Isak placed an early header from a Dominik Szoboszlai corner straight at the visiting goalkeeper Matvey Safonov it was Liverpool’s first attempt on target in the entire tie. Liverpool’s pressing game was far more effective, resulting in numerous loose passes in the PSG midfield, while Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes were unable to raid from full-back as effectively as they did in the first leg. The hosts shaded the possession stats and had 21 attempts to PSG’s 12.
Dembélé should have given PSG an early lead and settled the quarter-final when PSG caught Liverpool cold with a quick throw-in. From João Neves’s touch, however, he hooked over from only six yards out. It was another bad miss by the man who was chiefly responsible for keeping Liverpool alive in the first leg but, like any world-class player, it did not affect him unduly.
Liverpool’s encouraging start was disrupted when Ekitiké went down with a suspected achilles injury and had to be taken off on a stretcher. Salah arrived to a rapturous reception and almost cranked up the volume with his first touch. Ibrahima Konaté headed Salah’s cross on to Milos Kerkez, who forced Safonov to save superbly at close range. Virgil van Dijk closed in on the rebound only for Marquinhos to intervene with a vital, brave challenge.
Isak was off the pace on his first start in four months and replaced by Cody Gakpo at the start of the second half. Jeremie Frimpong also gave way to Joe Gomez. Liverpool came out at full throttle. Gakpo tested Safonov from distance, Gomez headed over from the resulting corner, Ryan Gravenberch went close and Kerkez volleyed wide when picked out by a delightful Salah pass.
Liverpool were given a lifeline when the referee, Maurizio Mariani, awarded a penalty for a foul by Willian Pacho on Alexis Mac Allister. But what Mariani gave VAR taketh away. The Italian official was sent to the pitchside monitor and overturned his original decision upon seeing little contact between the pair.
Slot increased his attacking options with the introduction of Rio Ngumoha for Gomez, who reported an injury risk, but that came at the risk of being punished on the counterattack. So it proved. Liverpool’s hope was extinguished when Barcola broke down the left and found Kvaratskhelia. He turned possession on to Dembélé who, from 20 yards out, cut inside Mac Allister and swept a clinical shot into Giorgi Mamardashvili’s bottom right-hand corner. The trio repeated the trick in stoppage time and, suddenly, PSG’s victory appeared routine.
