Tens of thousands of Paris Saint-Germain fans descended on Munich to see if they’re club could get it done.
The UEFA Champions League. The holy grail.
Europe’s premier tournament has been an object of desire for France’s serial champions ever since their takeover by Qatar Sports Investments in 2011.
Numerous star players have passed through the Parc des Princes over the intervening period and, make no mistake, Luis Enrique’s French double-winners boast several lavishly gifted stars.
But this season also marks something of a step change. It is the first since 2016/17 when none of the superstar trio Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Kylian Mbappe have turned out for the Parisian outfit.
Here, we look back on PSG’s galactico years and what these men accomplished – and what they didn’t — in the Champions League.
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Did PSG win the Champions League with Neymar, Messi and Mbappe?
2017/18
Stung by their remarkable 6-5 aggregate defeat to Barcelona in the round of 16, despite winning the first leg 4-0 in Paris, PSG embarked upon a remarkable summer splurge — activating Neymar’s gargantuan €222million release clause and signing Mbappe, initially on loan from Monaco, for €180m. Those deals made Neymar and Mbappe the two most expensive players in football history and that remains the case.
Under head coach Unai Emery, PSG swept the board at home, winning Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, Coupe de la Ligue and the Trophee des Champions. They topped their Champions League group, with a 3-0 home win over Bayern Munich the highlight, but ran into Real Madrid in the Round of 16, losing both matches to depart 5-2 on aggregate.
Neymar scored six goals in the group stage and laid on three assists. He could not add to that tally in a 3-1 defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu and missed the second leg of the Madrid tie with a metatarsal injury, something that would become a recurring theme. Mbappe’s four Champions League goals in 2017/18 similarly all came during the group stages.
2018/19
Thomas Tuchel succeeded Emery and retained Ligue 1 at a canter. PSG topped a Champions League group featuring eventual winners Liverpool but fell in the last 16 again.
That outcome seemed unlikely when Mbappe scored his fourth Champions League goal of the season in a 2-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford, but a controversial late penalty saw Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team complete a remarkable 3-1 win in Paris to progress via the away goals rule.
Neymar scored five times in six group stage wins, the bulk of those coming via a hat-trick against Red Star Belgrade, but was sidelined for the United matches.
2019/20
A fit Neymar and PSG reached the Champions League final. Fancy that! That they were beaten 1-0 by Bayern Munich in Lisbon by a goal from one of their youth team rejects, Kinglsey Coman, still managed to shine an unhelpful light on the wider transfer policy.
Ligue 1 was ended early by the coronavirus pandemic, with PSG declared champions. They later completed the domestic clean sweep by winning the Coupe de la Ligue and Coupe de France in consecutive weeks at the end of July.
That served as a useful warm-up for UEFA’s finals tournament of one-off matches in the Portuguese capital, where Tuchel’s men beat Atalanta and RB Leipzig to reach the final. Even by that stage, it had been their best Champions League campaign of the superstar era, as they thumped Real Madrid 3-0 in the group stage and came from behind to topple an Erling Haaland-inspired Borussia Dortmund in the last 16.
Suspension following his protests after the United defeat and a hamstring injury curtailed Neymar’s group-stage involvement, but he came good with three goals and four assists on his return. None of Mbappe’s five goals came after the group stage.
2020/21
Mauricio Pochettino replaced Tuchel mid-season but could not prevent Lille from winning Ligue 1. Still, the Champions League carried hope of salvation as Mbappe really hit his straps. He netted eight in 10 appearances overall, including a hat-trick as Barcelona were brutally dealt with in the Round of 16.
Two more followed in a gripping quarterfinal with Bayern that fell PSG’s way on away goals. Pochettino’s side hit the front early on against Manchester City but lost 2-1 in Paris and could not remedy matters at the Etihad Stadium, with Riyad Mahrez scoring three in a 4-1 aggregate reverse.
Neymar contributed six goals and four assists despite missing the Barcelona tie with an adductor problem. He was present and correct for both games against City, but Mbappe went down injured and remained an unused substitute for the denouement in Manchester.
2021/22
Superstars assemble! Messi arrived on a free transfer from an embattled Barcelona and scored a fabulous goal as PSG beat Manchester City in the group stage. Mbappe was on target at the Etihad Stadium before Pep Guardiola’s men came back to win the return clash.
Mbappe scored in both legs to put PSG 2-0 up in the last 16 against Real Madrid before a Karim Benzema hat-trick inside the final half hour stunningly turned the tables. All three of the stars were present and correct for the collapse in Madrid, something that fuelled mounting supporter frustration.
2022/23
Christoph Galtier replaced Pochettino and retained Ligue 1, but the last 16 draw in the Champions League again refused to be kind and left too high a hurdle.
Mbappe finished the tournament with seven goals in eight matches, but neither he nor Neymar or Mbappe could breach Bayern Munich, who went through 3-0 on aggregate. Neymar missed the second leg due to ankle surgery. It was the end of the road for himself and Messi.
2023/24
Mbappe had one more season to run before joining Real Madrid on a lucrative free transfer, although no one could question his commitment to the cause as his brace in a 4-1 away win underpinned a magnificent comeback to defeat Barcelona.
They looked destined to reach the final at Wembley, but ran into a robust Borussia Dortmund in the semifinals, losing both legs 1-0.
