At a combined outlay of €400 million (S$648 million), Neymar and Kylian Mbappe are the costliest front pairing in history.
But neither the Brazil nor France international – the two most expensive players – could find a way past Manuel Neuer as Bayern Munich denied Paris Saint-Germain their first Champions League trophy.
Both had chances to score, particularly in the first half, when the Germany captain denied Neymar with an outstretched leg and when Mbappe shot straight at him.
PSG coach Thomas Tuchel was forced to defend his star duo afterwards, with Neymar ending the night in a flood of tears.
“We want Neymar and Kylian to score but we can’t ask for it all the time,” said the German.
“I am proud because Ney still had a match with an incredible capacity, he showed his mentality. For Kylian, it was difficult, he suffered a serious injury, missed a lot of training. It was a miracle that he was with us at all.”
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As it was, Kingsley Coman, whose boyhood club were PSG, grabbed the only goal in the second half as Bayern ran out 1-0 winners to land their sixth European Cup.
Lamenting PSG’s inability to take their chances, Tuchel said: “I am convinced that if we had scored the first goal, we’d win the game.
“I had the impression that the first goal would decide the fate of this final. We have to keep this quality to continue on this road.
“We have (Keylor) Navas, but Neuer was in top form. He took the goalkeeping game to a new level. Unfortunately for us.”
Since the Qatari takeover in 2011, the French champions, who also landed the other two domestic trophies this season, have had four coaches, including Tuchel.
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His predecessors were all sacked for failing to deliver the one piece of silverware missing from their trophy cabinet and there is speculation he will also pay the price after two seasons of failure.
However, Tuchel refused to comment on the rumours, claiming his contract runs until next summer and he “didn’t know anything else”.
PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi was also tight-lipped about the coach’s future, saying: “I am very proud of my players. We had a great season, a great tournament. Nobody thought we would go to the final.”
PSG midfielder Ander Herrera is hopeful the owners will not make any rash decisions in the wake of another European disappointment.
“We have built something important. We have to stay together and start the next dream next week,” said the Spain international.
Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.
Paris St Germain's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scores their first goal. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
Paris Saint-Germain secured a fifth successive Ligue 1 title, beating nearest challengers Lens 2-0 away in their penultimate match of the league season on Wednesday.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored after 29 minutes, and substitute Ibrahim Mbaye added a stoppage-time strike to see PSG advance to 76 points, out of the reach of Lens, who are assured of second place on 67 points.
The championship is PSG’s 14th Ligue 1 title and strengthens their status as the most successful club in French league history.
The Parisians, who will play in the Champions League final later this month, were all but assured of the title going into the fixture with a six-point lead over Lens and a vastly superior goal difference, but needed one more point to make sure.
But they needed a series of dramatic saves from goalkeeper Matvey Safonov to ensure victory as their hosts had several good opportunities to win the game in an electric atmosphere at Stade Bollaert-Delelis.
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Lens had a 20th-minute header from Adrien Thomasson cleared off the PSG line by Illia Zabarnyi, but nine minutes later, Ousmane Dembele stole the ball from Lens defender Malang Sarr and put a quick pass through for Kvaratskhelia to hammer home from point-blank range.
After that, the best opportunities fell for Lens, but Safonov made a series of sharp stops to deny both Wesley Said and Abdallah Sima, who then struck the post in the 73rd minute to add to the home frustrations.
Teenager Mbaye hit an impressive strike on the counterattack to score PSG’s second goal at the end of the game and give more gloss to the scoreline.
PSG had travelled with a severely depleted squad. Lucas Chevalier, Achraf Hakimi, Lee Kang-in, Nuno Mendes, Willian Pacho and Warren Zaire-Emery were all unavailable through injury.
PSG finish their season with a derby away against Paris FC on Sunday and then defend their Champions League crown against Arsenal in Budapest on May 30.
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Lens, whose coach Pierre Sage was voted Coach of the Year by his peers this week, complete their league campaign away at fourth-placed Olympique Lyonnais on Sunday and then play Nice in the French Cup final at the Stade de France in Paris on May 22. Lens will compete in next season’s Champions League.
Lionel Messi will play his last game for Paris St Germain against Clermont on Saturday, coach Christophe Galtier said on Thursday as he called on fans to give the Argentine forward a warm send-off at the Parc des Princes.
Messi, who has 21 goals and 20 assists for PSG in all competitions this season, moved to the French capital from Barcelona in 2021 on a two-year contract.
The 35-year-old, who led Argentina to the World Cup title in Qatar and also boasts a record seven Ballon d’Or awards, won the Ligue 1 title in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons with PSG as well as the French Super Cup in July 2022.
“I had the privilege of coaching the best player in the history of football. This will be his last match at the Parc des Princes, and I hope that he will receive the warmest of welcomes,” Galtier told reporters on Thursday.
Last month, French media reported that Messi was suspended for two weeks after an unauthorised trip to Saudi Arabia when he was supposed to train with his team following their 3-1 defeat at home to Lorient in the league.
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“This year, he has been an important part of the team, always available. I don’t think any of the comments or criticisms are justified,” Galtier said.
“He’s always been there for the team. It’s been a great privilege to accompany him throughout the season.”
Messi’s future at PSG had been the subject of much speculation recently, with a source close to the Argentina captain telling Reuters that he had received a formal offer to join Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal next season.
He has also been linked in the media with a move back to boyhood club Barcelona, with the United States’ Major League Soccer club Inter Miami also being touted as a possible destination.
PSG’S TITLE CELEBRATIONS ON HOLD
Messi’s last game for PSG is unlikely to be a joyous affair, with Galtier saying that their title celebrations would be put on ice with the distraught squad’s thoughts occupied with concern for goalkeeper Sergio Rico.
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Rico was involved in a riding accident while participating in an annual pilgrimage in southern Spain, the day after PSG wrapped up the title with one game to spare after a 1-1 draw at Racing Strasbourg.
Rico has been in intensive care after suffering “a serious mishap due to a mule cart and a horse that hit him”, his family said in a statement late on Sunday. Spanish paper Marca reported that Rico had been riding a horse himself.
“There will be no celebrations, it’s been a very difficult week. We’re all affected because we went from winning the French title on Saturday to waking up in more than a little pain on Sunday morning,” Galtier told reporters ahead of PSG’s final league game of the season.
“We’re all affected, and we’re trying as best we can to take our minds off things through the training sessions… We’re very united in sending out lots of positive vibes and energy to Sergio, his mum, his wife and his loved ones.”
Messi walks out on PSG fans after defeat Kunle Solaja
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Paris St Germain were lucky enough to enjoy the continued support of their fans during their 2-0 home defeat against Stade Rennais on Sunday – their first at home in Ligue 1 this season, but only a few players went to the Auteuil kop to greet them after a dismal display.
Kylian Mbappe was one of them after the France forward was denied twice by Rennes keeper Steve Mandanda, but Lionel Messi, who looked nothing like the player who inspired Argentina to the World Cup title last December, walked straight to the dressing room, as did the disappointing Marco Verratti.
PSG lead the standings on 66 points from 28 games with a seven-point advantage over Olympique de Marseille, who ended Stade de Reims’s 19-game unbeaten streak in the league with a 2-1 away win courtesy of an Alexis Sanchez double.
