At long last, Paris Saint-Germain can lay claim to European club soccer’s grandest trophy, following a 5-0 dismantling of Inter Milan in Saturday’s final in Munich.
The score is the largest winning margin in the final of the competition, and secures PSG’s treble after they captured the Ligue 1 and Coupe de France titles earlier this year.
Achraf Hakimi got the scoring started 12 minutes into the match, and the French squad never looked back from there. “We have made history, we have written our names in the history of this club,” Hakimi said. “For a long time this club deserved it, we are very happy. We have created a great family.”
“He [Luis Enrique] is the man who has changed everything at PSG. Since he came here, he has changed the way football is seen. He is a loyal man; he deserves it more than anyone else.”
Desire Doue and Sunny Mayulu became the 3rd and 4th teenagers to score in a Champions League final match, joining Patrick Kluivert and Carlos Alberto after a 21 year drought. “I don’t have words,” Doué said. “But what I can say is, ‘Thank you Paris,’ we did it.”
“It’s pride, it’s everything, it’s exceptional,” striker Ousmane Dembele told reporters. “It’s a first for PSG but especially good since we did it in style. We went to Liverpool, to Aston Villa, and played great games. We deserve it and so do the fans.”
Spanish manager Luis Enrique, who took over for Christophe Galtier in July of 2023 becomes just the 7th head coach to win the Champions League with two different teams after previously capturing the crown with Barcelona back in 2015.
After bringing in soccer superstars such as Kylian Mbappe, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Neymar, Ronaldinho, and Lionel Messi, it would ultimately be youth and teamwork that finally got PSG over the hump. Following the final whistle, fans took to the streets in Paris, setting off fireworks, flares, and donning PSG scarves, flags and more.
The Eiffel Tower was lit up in the club’s Red and Blue colours, while the French capital deployed nearly 5,500 police officers to ensure that the celebrations remained under control. French President Emmanuel Macron took to social media to post “A glorious day for PSG! Bravo, we are all proud. Paris, the capital of Europe this evening.”
According to reports, Paris Saint-Germain players and coaches are expected to be hosted at the Elysee Palace on Sunday with a parade down the Champs Élysées planned afterwards.
Photo: Like tears in rain. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.