Kylian Mbappe scored twice as Paris St-Germain beat Barcelona at Camp Nou to turn around a first-leg deficit and reach the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
Barca won the first leg 3-2 in France, but PSG took advantage of an early Barcelona sending off to secure their place in the last four for the first time since 2021.
Barcelona scored from their first notable attack to extend their lead from the first leg just 12 minutes in, as Lamine Yamal glided past Nuno Mendes and cut back a ball that was touched home by Raphinha.
PSG were offered hope in the 29th minute, as Ronald Araújo was sent off for bringing down Bradley Barcola when he was the last man, with Yamal the player sacrificed so that Iñigo Martínez could bolster the hosts’ backline.
Barcola then delivered a cross that Ousmane Dembélé sent crashing into the Barça net after having his every touch vehemently booed by his former fans. Undeterred by the reception, Dembélé came agonisingly close to a second on the night moments before the break.
Barça were dealt two more scares shortly after the restart, as Achraf Hakimi’s strike was awkwardly tipped over by Marc-André ter Stegen before Fabián Ruiz fired agonisingly wide.
PSG kept coming though, and levelled the tie in the 54th minute when a corner routine culminated in Vitinha finding space and sending a pinpoint strike into the bottom corner.
Barcelona boss Xavi Hernández was then sent off after losing his head on the touchline, and things got even worse for the hosts when João Cancelo lunged in on Dembélé to concede a penalty that Mbappé clinically converted for his 40th goal of the season – sending the visitors into an aggregate lead.
And in the 89th minute, Mbappé struck to ensure that PSG won a UEFA tie after losing the first leg at home for the first time in eight attempts, maintaining hope of the UEFA Champions League title they crave.
The Luis Enrique’s side will face Borussia Dortmund, who beat Atletico Madrid 5-4 on aggregate in the semifinal. The first leg of the tie will go down on 30 April, with the second leg on 7 May.
