Paris Saint-Germain faced a narrow defeat at the hands of Borussia Dortmund, thanks to Mats Hummels’ goal that secured their spot in the Champions League final.
Hummels’ crucial goal in the second half sealed the victory as BVB triumphed 1-0 against PSG in Paris and 2-0 on aggregate.
Despite their youthful lineup, PSG’s average age of 24 years and 157 days was the youngest in a Champions League semi-final since Arsenal’s youthful squad in 2009.
The experienced defender, Hummels, emerged as the hero with his first Champions League goal for Dortmund since 2013, making him the third oldest player to score in a Champions League semi-final.
Aged 35 years and 143 days, Hummels’ goal was only his fifth in the competition, ending a 42-game drought dating back to 2018 when he played for Bayern Munich.
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PSG’s defeat highlighted their ongoing Champions League struggles, especially as Kylian Mbappe failed to make a significant impact, hitting the crossbar with one of his five attempts.
The woodwork proved unlucky for PSG throughout the season, hitting the goal frame 14 times, a record since 2003-04, with six occurring in this particular match.
Despite an expected goal tally of 3.2, PSG failed to score, making it only the fourth game in Champions League history where a team with over 3.0 expected goals could not find the net.
Dortmund’s 1-0 win in both legs against PSG marked only the second time this scoreline has determined the outcome of a Champions League semi-final, with the previous instance dating back to 1996-97 against Manchester United.
This victory means Dortmund has reached the Champions League final for the third time, alluding to a potential rematch with Bayern Munich at Wembley Stadium, where they last met in 2013.