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First-half goals from Neymar and Juan Bernat were enough to see Paris Saint-Germain book their place in the quarterfinals of the Champions League after three consecutive years of heartbreak in the round-of-16.
The first leg in Germany had finished 2-1 in favour of the hosts, meaning that PSG had it all to do in the second leg if they were to progress in the competition.
The cards were stacked against the French side from the off - coronavirus concerns had forced the match to be played behind closed doors, which meant that there was no home support to call upon.
Manager Thomas Tuchel was also without the services of Thiago Silva, while talismanic French forward Kylian Mbappe overcame a throat infection but only made the bench. If that wasn’t enough, history was against PSG as well - they had never beaten Borussia Dortmund in European competition, drawing twice and losing once.
The home side understandably did all the running in the opening exchanges as they looked for the goal that would bring them level in the tie. The Germans, on the other hand, appeared nervous, to begin with, but managed to hold firm while allowing PSG to retain the majority of the possession.
Just as the home side were beginning to get frustrated and allowing Dortmund back into the game, Neymar stepped up to put his side into the lead just shy of the half-hour mark. Angel Di Maria swung in a dangerous cross from the right and the Brazilian nipped in ahead of Achraf Hakimi to plant a header past Roman Burki in the Dortmund goal.
Neymar’s goal seemed to spark some life into Dortmund, who mustered up a few tame efforts that failed to test Keylor Navas. The visitors seemed to be heading into the break 1-0 down and in the ascendancy only for Juan Bernat to land the sucker-punch just before half time. Di Maria sent Pablo Sarabia down the right flank, who in turn crossed the ball across the box where Bernat applied a faint touch to guide the ball in at the far post.
The second half saw Dortmund come out with much more attacking intent as they went in search of the goal that would bring the aggregate scores level once again. Abandoning their defensive mindset, they started to string together a few attacks but were found lacking in the final third. Their youthful attackers were marshalled superbly by a committed PSG defensive unit, with Keylor Navas scarcely forced into action.
The game had been simmering for some time before it reached a boiling point at 90 minutes when Emre Can was sent off for a foul and a subsequent altercation with Neymar. Any remaining hope Dortmund had of getting back into the tie went down the tunnel with Can, as the Parisians progressed into the quarters.
Here are the three standout performers from the match where Tuchel managed to pull one over on his former employers:
#3 Juan Bernat
The Spanish left-back would have been intimately familiar with Dortmund’s style of play from his time at Bayern Munich and put in a mature performance to ensure that his new side got over the line.
He showed great desire to get forward when his side were chasing the tie and was rewarded for his endeavour on the stroke of half time as his deft touch resulted in the go-ahead goal for PSG.
As the visitors showed much more attacking intent in the second half, Bernat displayed his defensive capabilities, even though he was helped by the normally incisive Hakimi not having the best of games.
#2 Marquinhos
In the absence of Thiago Silva, Marquinhos was given the mantle of experienced centre-back and was also handed the unenviable assignment of marking Erling Haaland. Despite his side having most of the possession in the first half and coming under increasing pressure in the second, Marquinhos displayed remarkable focus and concentration and stuck to his task manfully.
The free-scoring Norewgian barely had a kick in the whole game, which proved to be quite crucial in PSG keeping Dortmund at bay for 90 minutes. Although a yellow card in the scuffle following Can’s sending off took some of the gloss of his night, it was still a calm and composed display from the PSG defender.
#1 Neymar
The catalyst for PSG scoring twice in the first half was undoubtedly Neymar, as the Brazilian playmaker was popping up all over the field in dangerous positions and pulling all the strings. It was Neymar who opened the scoring just in the 28th minute with an uncharacteristic diving header.
This goal was his 38th involvement in a goal in 28 home Champions League appearances (scoring 26 and assisting 12) across his time with Barcelona and PSG. What was even more creditable was the work he put in off the ball, harrying and hounding Hakimi throughout and earning the applause of the PSG bench for the challenges he put in over the 90 minutes.
