Kolkata : UCL 2024-25 Final between PSG & Inter Milan will be the first Champions League meeting between these clubs and only the second final between teams from France and Italy after the 1992/93 decider, when Marseille defeated Milan 1-0 – that match was also played in Munich, at the Olympiastadion.
Paris will meet Inter in the UEFA Champions League final at the Munich Football Arena on Saturday 31 May.
Paris are aiming to go one better than in 2020, when they lost to Bayern München in Lisbon. Three-time winners Inter last lifted the trophy in 2010 and have taken part in one decider under Simone Inzaghi, going down to Manchester City in the 2023 showpiece.
Paris had a turbulent journey in the inaugural league phase. After a shaky start, they rallied to win their final three group games and clinch 15th place. A 10-0 knockout phase play-off win over domestic rivals Brest ignited their campaign. From there, Luis Enrique’s team overturned a home defeat to eliminate league phase winners Liverpool on penalties, then dispatched Aston Villa (5-4 on aggregate) and Arsenal (3-1 aggregate) – the latter a measure of revenge for a league phase loss.
Inter, by contrast, were among the most consistent sides in the league phase, finishing fourth with just one defeat – a 1-0 loss at Bayer Leverkusen, the only goal they conceded. In the knockout phase, Simone Inzaghi’s men eased past Feyenoord, edged Bayern 4-3 overall in a tight tie, then outlasted Barcelona in a nail-biting semi-final thriller that ended 7-6 on aggregate.
Paris are the third French team to reach the final of the European Cup/Champions League more than once after Reims (1955/56, 1958/59) and Marseille (1990/91, 1992/93). They have won nine of their last 11 Champions League matches (L2) and have scored the first goal in seven of their last nine games in the competition.
This will be Inter’s seventh European Cup/Champions League final and have won ten games in this edition – their best total in a single season in UEFA competition. The Nerazzurri have lost only one of their 14 Champions League matches this term and are unbeaten in the last eight (W6 D2).
Possible line-ups
Paris: Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; João Neves, Vitinha, Fabián Ruiz; Kvaratskhelia, Dembélé, Barcola
Out: None
Doubtful: None
Inter: Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Çalhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Lautaro Martínez, Thuram
Out: None
Doubtful: Bisseck (knee), Pavard (ankle), Zieliński (muscular).
Views from the camps
Luis Enrique, Paris coach: “We’ve grown a lot this season and the players have progressed a lot. I think the strength of the team is the most important thing. You learn something every day after many years of experience as a coach, and I’m improving all the time with this group”.
“The motivation for me is to win the Champions League for the first time with Paris. I want this as a gift for the team, for the club, for the city. My team knows how to unpick teams like this and how to get that tight-knit defence to unravel. I’m very optimistic.”
Marquinhos, Paris captain: “I don’t want to let this opportunity pass me by. It’s over to us to do the job, win the trophy, bring it back to Paris for our supporters, for our families.”
Simone Inzaghi, Inter coach: “The players are determined to win; not obsessed, we don’t want that. We are proud to be Inter. I dreamed of playing the Champions League final; I didn’t do it as a player, but thanks to this group of players it’s the second in three years as a coach”.
“We need to face Paris knowing there will be moments in which we’ll suffer, and other moments when we’ll have the ball and they’ll need to defend. Details and moments are key.”
Lautaro Martínez, Inter captain: “I’ve won big trophies, but I’m missing the Champions League. I’m happy to be in another final. We want to have the perfect game and bring the trophy back to Milan.”
