The squads have been announced and there are no major surprises.
Arsenal fans will be happy to see Bukayo Saka in the team as he continues his return from injury. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been managing his minutes in recent weeks in the hope of getting his best player sharp for the biggest game this club has seen in years.
For PSG, the attacking intent is there for all to see with the front three of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Désiré Doué and Ousmane Dembélé set to give Arsenal’s defense a tough test.
Arsenal XI: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly, Rice, Merino, Ødegaard, Saka, Martinelli, Trossard
Kick off is now less than an hour away.
PSG XI: Donnarumma, Mendes, Pacho, Marquinhos, Hakimi, Ruiz, Vitinha, Neves, Kvaratskhelia, Dembélé, Doué
A lot has changed since Arsenal last featured in a Champions League semifinal.
Barack Obama had not long been inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States; the iPhone 3G was the hottest mobile on the market; and ‘Poker Face’ by Lady Gaga was No. 1 on the US music charts.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was still playing for Everton the last time the Gunners reached this stage and the size of the occasion is certainly not lost on him.
“You sense the energy, the enthusiasm, that it’s something unique,” he told reporters during his pre-match press conference.
“It’s probably one of the biggest games that the Emirates has seen since we built it. We are making history. It’s a beautiful story right now, but we want much more.”
The last time Arsenal reached this stage of the competition it was beaten 4-1 on aggregate by Manchester United, including a chastening 3-1 defeat in the home leg at the Emirates.
Arteta is confident that his players are ready to face what is one of the biggest nights in the club’s history.
“We have to have the feeling that we have to hold [the players] back tomorrow to go on that pitch and express themselves,” he said.
“It’s a moment now to say: ‘OK, this is who we are, this is who we are as a team, this is who I am as an individual and I’m going to put my very best in there to make it happen.’
“Play with that mindset and let yourself go. Live the now, the present. This is where we are. We are so fortunate.”
The omens are good for Arsenal heading into Tuesday’s game as the Gunners are yet to taste defeat in five matches against Paris Saint-Germain.
These two clubs first met over two legs in the semifinals of the 1993-94 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, with Arsenal earning a 1-1 draw in Paris before winning the return leg at Highbury 1-0 to reach the final, where it would defeat Parma.
Arsenal and PSG then shared the spoils over two matches during the 2016-17 Champions League group stages, drawing 1-1 at the Parc des Princes and 2-2 at the Emirates.
The last time these sides met, during the group stages of this season’s tournament, Arsenal earned a dominant 2-0 win in north London after two errors from PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
The Italian has clearly put that blip behind him and produced a number of stunning saves over the two legs against Liverpool and Aston Villa.
Though Arsenal and PSG have already faced off in a European semifinal, Tuesday’s game is by far the biggest between these two continental giants.
French winger Ousmane Dembéle is having a brilliant season and will likely lead the line for his side again.
He already has seven goals in the Champions League and looks to be fulfilling some of that sublime potential he showed as a youngster.
Now 27, Dembéle has matured and is excelling in his new forward role which makes up a very fluid PSG attack.
He possesses a blistering pace that will certainly keep Arsenal’s defenders on their toes. His battle against Arsenal defender William Saliba will be an interesting watch.
PSG might be flying high now but it initially struggled in the tournament earlier this season.
In fact, the recently crowned French champion lost three of its first five matches – including a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal in north London – before recovering some form in the latter gameweeks to secure a qualification playoff spot.
It was then that things seemingly clicked for the Parisians as it thrashed fellow French side Brest 10-0 on aggregate to reach the Round of 16.
Next up was Liverpool, who many considered the favorites for this year’s title. PSG, though, was brilliant across both legs and totally deserved to win 2-0 on aggregate.
In Arsenal, PSG now faces another difficult tie against another Premier League opponent.
Winger Bukayo Saka has undoubtedly earned his nickname of ‘Starboy’ – given to him by fans after his starring role for both club and country in recent years – and Arsenal fans will need him to shine bright again against PSG.
The England international is undoubtedly his team’s most potent attacking threat and his presence was sorely missed earlier this year when he sat out with an injury.
But he’s back now, and has been building back his match sharpness in recent weeks.
He has five goals and two assists in the Champions League this season, but will be up against a formidable opponent in PSG’s Nuno Mendes – the defender has shut out some world-class wingers so far this season, including Liverpool star Mohamed Salah in the Round of 16.
The battle between the two could be decisive in this semifinal.
Arsenal’s injury woes have been well documented this season, none more so than in the attacking department.
Some fans were furious that the club didn’t bring in a recognized striker during the January transfer window after injuries to both its forwards, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz.
But Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta had a plan all along.
Mikel Merino, a versatile midfielder, has been asked to step up as a make-shift striker for the end of this season and he has proved more than good enough.
The Spaniard has eight goals and five assists in all competitions so far this season, but he will not be leading the line against PSG.
That’s because Arsenal have a shortage of midfielders available today, so Merino slots back into a more familiar position with Leandro Trossard given the nod to start as striker.
After failing again to seriously compete for the Premier League title this year, the Champions League has offered Arsenal fans something to get excited about as we approach the business end of the season.
The north London club breezed through the league stage, only dropping points in a 1-0 defeat to Inter Milan and in a draw against Atalanta.
Then came a record-breaking result against PSV in the Round of 16, with Arsenal dismantling the Dutch side 7-1 in the first leg. The Gunners then followed it up with a simple 2-2 draw in the return leg, progressing as 9-2 winners.
In truth, many Arsenal fans expected that to be as good as it got in this year’s tournament with Real Madrid waiting for them in the quarterfinals.
But two stunning free kicks from Declan Rice in the first leg put Arsenal 3-0 up, and Mikel Arteta’s side prevented an upset in the return leg, winning 2-1 on the night.
Up next is PSG, a team Arsenal beat 2-0 in the league stage back in October.
Any Arsenal fans looking for good omens ahead of the London club’s most important match of the season – Tuesday’s game against Paris Saint-Germain marking a return to the Champions League semifinals for the first time since 2009 – need only look to this past weekend.
Arsenal’s women’s team stunned French giant Olympique Lyon – the record eight-time Women’s Champions League winner – by overturning a first-leg deficit to reach the final where the Gunners will face defending champion Barcelona Femení.
Arsenal’s women’s team remains the only English side to win the tournament, with the landmark triumph occurring in 2007. A year earlier, Arsenal’s men were denied in the final by Barça… but if the Gunners see off PSG over the next week and change, it could result in another Arsenal-Barcelona final. The theoretical matchup would also mean that both the men’s and women’s finals this season would feature the same two clubs.
What’s more, in déjà vu of a different kind, Arsenal has already beaten PSG in Champions League group phase play this season, a 2-0 home success on October 1, courtesy of first-half goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka. In somewhat of an odd coincidence, UEFA has even decided to appoint the same referee, Slovenian official Slavko Vinčić, to take charge of this first leg.
When you consider that Arsenal has never lost a competitive match to PSG, everyone connected with the Gunners will be hoping, as they say in Paris, plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.
