Ousmane Dembélé scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain defeated Liverpool FC to secure a place in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, where either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid await Luis Enrique’s side.
PSG entered the second leg at Anfield with a two-goal advantage but were pushed hard by a spirited Liverpool side. However, Dembélé struck in the 72nd minute with a superb left-footed finish before adding a second in stoppage time to seal the win.
Backed by a vocal home crowd, Liverpool pressed in search of a famous European comeback, but Arne Slot’s men were unable to find the breakthrough against the defending champions. For the second consecutive season, they exit the competition at the hands of PSG.
Slot handed Alexander Isak his first start since December, leaving Mohamed Salah on the bench. However, Salah was introduced in the 30th minute after Hugo Ekitike was forced off with an apparent injury.
Dembélé earlier missed a clear chance, blazing over with only the goalkeeper to beat, while at the other end, Marquinhos produced a crucial defensive intervention to deny Liverpool.
At half-time, Slot made changes, replacing Isak with Cody Gakpo and Jeremie Frimpong with Joe Gomez. Liverpool began the second half brightly but failed to convert their chances.
In the 65th minute, Liverpool were awarded a penalty after Alexis Mac Allister went down following a challenge from Willian Pacho. However, after a VAR review, referee Maurizio Mariani overturned the decision.
Seven minutes later, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia set up Dembélé, who fired past Giorgi Mamardashvili from distance to effectively end the contest. He later completed his brace from close range after being teed up by Bradley Barcola.
The defeat means Liverpool are set to finish the season without silverware, and their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League remain uncertain.
