Dortmund advances to Champions League Final with Hummels’s heroic goal
In a thrilling 1-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday, Borussia Dortmund secured their spot in the Champions League final with a 2-0 aggregate win, thanks to Matt Hummels’s 50th-minute header.
The Germans will now set their sights on the final at Wembley on June 1, where they will face either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid.
Despite being considered underdogs, Dortmund’s remarkable journey to the final has captured the hearts of football fans worldwide.
Hummels, who also played in Dortmund’s last final appearance in 2013, emerged as the hero of the night, sealing their victory and silencing PSG with a clinical finish early in the second half.
Meanwhile, PSG’s repeated misfortunes in crucial knockout matches continue to haunt them, as they were unable to break the deadlock despite hitting the woodwork four times.
As PSG’s dreams of Champions League glory fade once again, star player Mbappe’s hopes of a fairytale farewell in the final are dashed.
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The disappointment of falling short yet again looms large over the Qatari-owned club, leaving them to reflect on missed opportunities and unfulfilled ambitions.
PSG’s last two semi-final appearances both came during the pandemic, meaning this was the first time they had hosted a match at this stage of a European competition with fans in 29 years, since losing to AC Milan in 1995.
They were favourites to reach their first Champions League final since 2020, despite their defeat in Dortmund six days earlier.
Luis Enrique’s team had won 2-0 at home against the same opponents in the group stage and were safe in the knowledge that a repeat of that performance would be enough.
The PSG coach made one major selection decision, dropping Bradley Barcola and bringing in Portuguese striker Goncalo Ramos. That meant moving Mbappe out of a central position and onto the left wing.
Dortmund would have been bracing themselves for an onslaught from kick-off, but that did not transpire.
Mbappe took only seven minutes to produce his first attempt, yet his volley was easily saved by Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
The hosts had most of the possession but struggled to get Mbappe into the game, with the France captain often looking isolated on the wing.
In fact it was Dortmund who had the best chance of the first half, when Karim Adeyemi led a counterattack before seeing his shot saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma.
It felt as though the hosts needed to change something or risk going out with a whimper.
They should have been ahead two minutes after the restart, when Ramos touched on a ball driven into the box by Mbappe, but Warren Zaire-Emery somehow contrived to hit the post from close range.
That was to prove crucial as Dortmund struck moments later.
PSG cheaply conceded a corner, and Julian Brandt’s resulting delivery from the Dortmund right was headed in by Hummels.
Ramos swept a shot over from a Vitinha pass on the hour mark before Nuno Mendes became the second PSG player to strike the right-hand post, this time with a powerful shot from outside the box.
It was starting to look as if it would really not be PSG’s night, and Luis Enrique realised he had to act as he sent on Barcola and Marco Asensio for Ramos and Fabian Ruiz, moving Mbappe through the middle.
Dortmund responded by withdrawing Jadon Sancho and sending on an extra defender in the hulking Niklas Suele.
They withstood everything PSG threw at them but were also helped by the frame of the goal, with Kobel turning Mbappe’s shot onto the bar on 86 minutes and Vitinha then rattling the bar too.
