Dembélé delivers knockout double as PSG end Liverpool’s European dream

It will be of little consolation to Arne Slot and Liverpool that, for the second season in succession, they went toe-to-toe with Paris Saint-Germain at Anfield and had nothing to show for their endeavours. Having exited the FA Cup quarter-final with a whimper, Liverpool exited the Champions League quarter-final with a fight. The damage done in Paris proved irretrievable.

Ousmane Dembélé, so wasteful in the first leg at Parc des Princes, put the quarter-final beyond any doubt with a clinical late finish to ensure there would be no famous European comeback from Liverpool on this occasion. Slot’s team at least performed with belief, and for 72 minutes they had hope, but the European champions held their nerve to advance into the semi-finals. Dembélé inflicted further punishment with a second goal in stoppage time.

There was a period of silence before kick-off as Liverpool remembered the 97 fans who were unlawfully killed at Hillsborough on the eve of the 37th anniversary of the disaster. It was observed impeccably until being broke, unbelievably, by a shout for Liverpool. Black armbands were worn by both teams and Slot used his programme notes to question why a Hillsborough Law has still not been introduced, almost two years into a Labour government that promised one before it was elected. “The best way for the country to honour them after all this time would be to introduce the law that the Hillsborough families and fellow campaigners are asking for,” he wrote.

On the field he tasked the expensively-assembled but rarely seen forward line of Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitiké and Florian Wirtz with delivering a goal threat that was non-existent in Paris. The trio had played together for a combined total of 88 minutes following their arrivals for a potential £320m last summer. With Mohamed Salah dropped to the bench for the second successive game against PSG this was Slot looking to the future as well as trying to spark improvement in the present.

By that token, Slot’s selection succeeded. PSG remained dangerous and dominant in possession yet Liverpool caused the European champions more problems in the opening exchanges at Anfield than throughout a one-sided defeat at Parc des Princes. When Isak placed an early header from a Dominik Szoboszlai corner straight at visiting goalkeeper Matvei Safonov, it was Liverpool’s first attempt on target in the entire tie. Liverpool’s pressing game was also far more effective, resulting in numerous loose passes in the PSG midfield, while Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes were unable to raid from full-back as effectively as they did in the first leg.

For all of the encouragement that Anfield took from their team’s energetic start, the visitors should still have taken the lead and strengthened their hold on the quarter-final when catching Liverpool cold with a quick throw-in. João Neves turned Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s cross inside to Ousmane Dembélé who, with his back to goal, hooked wildly over from only six yards out. It was another terrible miss by the player who was chiefly responsible for keeping Liverpool alive in the first leg.

Ousmane Dembélé slots home Paris Saint-Germain’s second goal in stoppage time. Photograph: Jon Super/AP

Dembélé had also tested Giorgi Mamardashvili with an enterprising chip after the goalkeeper had rushed off his line to beat Warren Zaïre-Emery to a through ball. Mamardashvili was able to back-track and punch clear.

Liverpool were badly disrupted when Ekitiké was taken off on a stretcher on the half hour after his ankle appeared to give way as he attempted to chase a pass from Wirtz. There was no-one near the former PSG striker when he went down in agony. His painful departure prompted the arrival of Salah to a rapturous reception. The volume almost went up a notch when Salah’s first touch, a cross, was headed on by Ibrahima Konaté to Milos Kerkez. Safonov saved superbly at close range and just as Virgil van Dijk closed in on the rebound Marquinhos intervened with a vital and brave challenge.

Liverpool were caught in possession several times as the interval approached, inviting trouble, but Konaté produced a crucial clearance to prevent Dembélé connecting with Hakimi’s delivery in front of goal.

Isak was well off the pace on his first start in four months and replaced by Cody Gakpo at the start of the second half. Jeremie Frimpong also gave way to Joe Gomez. Liverpool came out at full throttle. Ryan Gravenberch began to wrestle control of midfield away from PSG with his surging runs from deep.

Gakpo tested Safonov from distance, Gomez headed over from the resulting corner, Gravenberch went close and Kerkez volleyed wide of the far post when picked out by a delightful Salah pass.

Liverpool were given a lifeline when the referee, Maurizio Mariani, awarded them a penalty for a foul by Willian Pacho on Alexis Mac Allister. But what Mariani gave VAR taketh away. The Italian official was sent to the pitch-side monitor and overturned his original decision upon seeing that Mac Allister made contact with the PSG defender.

Slot further increased his attacking options with the introduction of Rio Ngumoha, who soon forced Safonov into another good save, but that came at the risk of being punished on the counterattack. And so it proved. Liverpool’s hope was extinguished when the PSG substitute Barcola broke down the left and found Kvaratskhelia. He turned possession on to Dembélé who, from 20 yards out, cut inside Mac Allister and swept a clinical shot into Mamardashvili’s bottom right-hand corner.