Ousmane Dembele scores a penalty against Arsenal
Paris St-Germain underlined their status as one of European football’s greatest ever teams by retaining the Champions League.
Their nervy 4-3 win on penalties over Arsenal following a 1-1 draw in the final in Budapest backed up their 5-0 win over Inter Milan in Munich 12 months ago.
In doing so they became the first side to successfully defend their title since Real Madrid’s three-peat from 2016 to 2018, and only the second to do it in the Champions League era, which began in 1993.
Head coach Luis Enrique said: “This is the best moment of the season. We are still champs, two in a row, it’s amazing.”
All 10 of the outfield players who started PSG’s win over Arsenal, also started their victory over Inter Milan. Only goalkeeper Matvey Safonov was new, in for Gianluigi Donnarumma who joined Manchester City last summer.
To emphasise how good this team is, over the past two years PSG have won eight of the 10 trophies available to them - only missing out on last summer’s Club World Cup and this campaign’s French Cup.
But they still have a way to go to break Real Madrid’s record of five European Cups in a row between 1956 and 1960.
Next challenge for PSG is Aston Villa in the 2026 UEFA Super Cup final. Unai Emery’s Europa League winners will take on PSG at Stadion Salzburg, Austria on August 12.
The Villans want to lift the trophy for the second time, having beaten Barcelona 3-1 over two legs in the 1982 final, eight months after being crowned European champions.
It will be the two teams’ first meeting since last season’s Champions League quarter-final tie, which saw Villa win 3-2 in the second leg at Villa Park, losing 5-4 on aggregate to the eventual winners.
09 Aug, 2023
14 May, 2026
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