Sparkling in the first leg as in the return match, Wednesday, against Bayern Munich, Ousmane Dembélé and Kvitcha Kvaratskhelia splash their talent in every Champions League match in which they play. This second consecutive final in C1 bears their mark.

Published on: 05/06/2026 - 11:29 p.m. Modified on: 05/07/2026 - 00:00

Omnipresent during the first leg, Ousmane Dembélé and Kvitcha Kvaratskhelia once again carried Paris SG into the semi-final second leg of the Champions League on Wednesday May 6 in Munich, a winning formula to propel PSG to the final, its second in a row.

After the crazy pace of the first leg, it did not take three minutes for the Franco-Georgian duo to put Paris SG into orbit towards Budapest, where the Champions League final will pit the Parisian title holder against Arsenal.

Read alsoChampions League: PSG suffers but snatches Bayern its second consecutive final

An early goal to catapult Paris to the final

Taking advantage of the risky individual marking of the Munich defense, Kvitcha Kvaratskhelia deposited Dayot Upamecano after a perfect diamond movement with Wilian Pacho and Fabian Ruiz, the French international leaving him a boulevard on his left wing to overflow. At the heart of a completely disoriented Munich defense, Kvara found the 2025 Ballon d'Or at the far post, free from marking and whose shot left Manuel Neuer no chance.

Nothing better for a reunion on the lawn of the Allianz Arena, the same place where Ousmane Dembélé sealed his Ballon d'Or a little less than a year ago with two assists during the recital in the final of the Champions League against Inter Milan (5-0), for the Parisians' first European coronation.

At the time, the Georgian had only joined PSG for a few months (he left Napoli, where he earned the nickname "Kvaradona", in January 2025), but he had also made his contribution to the Parisian building on the magical night of May 30.

"Kvara", Mr. Champions League

“Kvara” was decisive for the 16th time this season in the Champions League (six assists and ten goals), the most important Parisian in recent months on the pitch for Parisian coach Luis Enrique.

“No matter if I score or not, when I leave the field, I want to be sure that I have given everything,” said the 25-year-old Georgian international on the eve of the semi-final first leg at the Parc des Princes.

Arriving in Munich with a small goal in advance, the Parisians were then able to tackle the rest with a much more comfortable mattress, not being forced to rush towards Neuer's goal.

The team's first defenders

As at the Parc des Princes a week ago, Dembélé and Kvaratskhelia imposed constant pressure, not only on the Munich defenders Tah and Upamecano, but also on Neuer, however a little more precise in his kicks, from the right and the left, than in the first leg.

Elusive on his left wing, it sometimes took Tah and Upamecano to stop Kvaratskhelia, abandoned by Dembélé on the hour mark (replaced by Bradley Barcola). The Georgian missed the knockout ball twice in the second half.

Shortly before the hour mark, he once again got the better of Upamecano, but his attempt was repelled by Manuel Neuer as at the start of the last ten minutes, after a hit with the sombrero on Kim Min.

And on a final foul obtained in yet another duel with Luis Diaz, Kvara could clench his fists, sitting on the pitch, haranguing the Parisians' goal.

In three and a half weeks at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Arsenal's central defense made up of Frenchman William Saliba and Gabriel is warned.

Luis Enrique has two of the best offensive players on the planet to seek a second consecutive triumph in the premier competition of European football, the famous "back-to-back" that few teams have managed to achieve since the creation of the event in 1955.

With AFP

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