Paris Saint-Germain was shut out in Germany as Borussia Dortmund fought to a hard-earned 1-0 victory over Luis Enrique’s squad. Now, all eyes to the upcoming return leg in Paris.
The Parc des Princes will host the semi-final match between PSG and Dortmund to see who will reach the finals and who will need to purchase Champions League Final tickets. In the previous round against FC Barcelona, PSG overcame a one-goal deficit on the road, so supporters are optimistic that Les Parisiens can turn things around at home.
The first issue that PSG will have to overcome is the injury to Lucas Hernández. The French defender went down in the first leg against Dortmund with an ACL injury and will miss significant time. In his place, Luis Enrique will likely opt for Lucas Beraldo to play at center-back alongside Marquinhos.
In the midfield, the only change the manager may consider is replacing Fabian Ruiz. The 28-year-old had a decent game, but he could start on the bench to make room for either Manuel Ugarte or Kang-In Lee. Both bring different elements, depending on Luis Enrique’s style.
Up front, I was initially happy with the choice to play Mbappé, Bradley Barcola, and Ousmane Dembélé, but the French trio didn’t score any goals despite several opportunities. One change could be to move Mbappé to the left wing and use Barcola as a super sub off the bench. At the striker position, I would like to see Gonçalo Ramos get the nod. He’s been scoring at an incredible rate when given the opportunity, and I think he could provide the aerial threat from set pieces that PSG will need against Dortmund.
With these changes, PSG should be able to score at least one goal at home, if not more. The supporters haven’t seen a home semi-final Champions League match in a long time, so the energy they will provide will fuel PSG to hopefully score multiple goals and advance with ease.
If PSG can come back against Dortmund, they will face either FC Bayern Munich or Real Madrid. Both sides battled to a 2-2 draw in the first leg and now head to Madrid for the second match. If Bayern wins and PSG advances, it’s a rematch of the 2020 final. If Real Madrid advances to play PSG, it will be Mbappé against the team he is rumored to be joining once his contract expires this summer. First, though, PSG must take care of business against Dortmund and make the necessary changes.
