UEFA Champions League
TOTTENHAM’S POCHETTINO DREAMS UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GLORY
Mauricio Pochettino has told Tottenham to shrug off the absence of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min as they prepare to face Ajax in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal Tuesday evening.
Kane headlines a lengthy injury list also including Erik Lamela and Harry Winks, while Son is suspended.
But having upset the odds to end Manchester City’s quest for a quadruple of trophies in the quarterfinals, manager Pochettino insisted Spurs’ strength as a collective can overcome Ajax’s talented group of rising stars.
“To be in a Champions League semifinal is something I dreamed about. You need to settle your dreams, to infinity and beyond,” Pochettino said at his pre-match press conference on Monday ahead of Tottenham’s first European Cup semifinal since 1962.
“The chance to play a semifinal for Tottenham has not happened often. We are in a circumstance that is not going to change and we must be ready
“It is impossible to be tired, impossible to not be excited to play. I am sure there is no doubt we will have the energy for 90 minutes.”
However, while Pochettino’s stretched squad were slipping to a sixth defeat in their last 10 Premier League games to West Ham on Saturday, Ajax have had a full week to rest as the entire Dutch league calendar for the weekend was postponed to allow them extra time to prepare.
Without Kane, who is not expected to return this season unless Spurs make it to the Champions League final on June 1, Tottenham’s goals have dried up since a thrilling 4-3 defeat in the second leg of their quarterfinal at City was enough to progress on away goals.
Christian Eriksen’s late strike to secure a 1-0 victory over Brighton on Tuesday was Spurs’ only goal in their past three games.
Son’s absence means Pochettino is robbed of another goal threat, with Lucas Moura and Fernando Llorente his only striking options.
However, the Argentine said Spurs’ teamwork can compensate for that lack of firepower.
“I think the point is that we arrive where we are now because we were a team and we are going to be a team,” he said.
“I don’t care who is going to score. Always it’s an issue to not have all the players fit, but in front of any name was the team, the collective.”
Pochettino also played down any suggestion that Kane could return in time for the second leg if the tie is still alive heading to the Johan Cruyff Arena next week.
“He’s doing well. He’s working and starting to run a bit inside. His rehab is so good but we cannot create any idea that we maybe cannot achieve.
“The most important thing is that he is in a good place and we’ll see what happens.”
Meanwhile, Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana, while reflecting on tonight’s match is of the view that the flamboyant European dreamers aren’t afraid of anyone as they prepare to continue their wild ride in the Champions League.
Four times European champions Ajax are hunting their first major continental triumph since Patrick Kluivert downed AC Milan in the 1995 final and have warmed hearts with a thrilling run to the last four that has recalled the glory days of Johan Cruyff and Total Football.
Next up are Spurs, who Ajax meet after dispatching reigning European champions Real Madrid and Juventus – tipped by many to win the whole thing after signing Cristiano Ronaldo – with thrilling displays that enchanted football fans across the continent.
“After beating Juventus and Real Madrid you’re not afraid of anyone,” Onana said in an interview with AFP.
“They (Spurs) are a very good team. They have very good players, especially on the counter where they can create problems for us. But it’s up to us to handle these situations.”
Cameroon international Onana has been a fixture between the sticks as the Dutch giants hunt a historic treble that Ajax have not completed since Cruyff’s 1972 heyday, when they won the second of three consecutive European Cups and combined that with the Dutch Cup and league title.
They are also top of the Eredivisie, although level on points with PSV Eindhoven, and take on Willem II in next month’s domestic cup final.
Asked by AFP if he expected Ajax to go so far in Europe, Onana said: “To be honest no! It’s my first season in the Champions League, and when we qualified for the group stage it was already like ‘wow’.”
Ajax’s continental campaign kicked off against Austrians Sturm Graz way back in July, the first of three qualifying rounds they had to negotiate before making the groups.
“We said to ourselves, there are six matches, let’s see if we can hang on to the Europa League!”
Instead Ajax finished comfortably second in Group E, unbeaten and only two points behind eventual group winner Bayern Munich, and now have a realistic chance of joining the Bavarians on five European Cups after turning on the style in the knockout rounds.
“It’s the philosophy of the club and it’s important for us to stay true to it: control the game, keep possession… it’s clear that fans have been enjoying watching it, and we have fun playing it,” says Onana.
Ajax have extra motivation going into their clash at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as they know that this is the last chance for this group of players to shock everyone and snatch the biggest prize in football.
Star midfielder Frenkie De Jong will leave for Barcelona in the summer for an initial 75 million euros ($89 million), while centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, who sent Juventus packing with a bullet header in the quarterfinals, could follow his teammate to Catalonia.
After knocking out Real, coach Franck De Boer admitted that forwards Hakim Ziyech and David Neres and Onana would also all be targeted by Europe’s biggest clubs come the end of the season, and the stopper wants to sign off this era with the perfect parting gift after missing out on the Europa League to Manchester United in 2017.
“It’s clear that this is our objective. Not just for the goal in and of itself, but for us, because after this season, there will be a lot of players who will leave,” says Onana.
“It is important for us to do something big. If that means winning the treble, well that will be simply beautiful.”
Paris St Germain midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery became the youngest player to win two Champions League finals after featuring in Saturday’s dramatic victory over Arsenal.
The France international, who came off the bench for extra time in PSG’s 4-3 penalty shootout triumph after a 1-1 draw against Arsenal at the Puskas Arena, lifted the trophy for the second straight season at the age of 20 years and two months.
Zaire-Emery had already featured briefly in last year’s crushing 5-0 victory over Inter Milan and now surpasses former Ajax Amsterdam midfielder Johan Neeskens, who was 20 years and eight months old when he won his second European Cup final in the 1970s.
-Reuters
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Paris St Germain held their nerve in a cagey Champions League final to retain the title by beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties as Saturday’s nail-biting showdown ended 1-1 after extra time, cementing the French side’s status among Europe’s modern greats.
Arsenal defender Gabriel blasted his spot kick over Matvey Safonov’s crossbar at the Puskas Arena, his miss confirming PSG as the first club to retain the trophy since Real Madrid completed their three-year reign from 2016 to 2018.
Long dismissed as glamorous underachievers despite vast resources, the Ligue 1 champions have now forged a dynasty under Luis Enrique, marrying attacking brilliance with resilience to establish themselves as the dominant force in European football.
“It’s stronger than last year because we knew before the match just how difficult it would be to play against Arsenal,” said Luis Enrique, whose side had thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 to claim Europe’s elite trophy for the first time.
“As a club and a city, it’s incredible to win, and I think we deserved it over the course of the season. The final was a real battle,” added the Spanish coach.
The outcome left Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice devastated but proud as his side finished their European campaign without losing a match aside from the shootout defeat in the final.
“It’s gutting. It’s devastating to lose a Champions League final on penalties,” he said. “But we try to take a lot of perspective from how far we’ve come as a group.
“An incredible season. Given it absolutely everything up until this point. We took the game to penalties. It’s a lottery.”
EUROPE’S BIGGEST STAGE
Eleven days after celebrating their first Premier League title in 22 years, Arsenal looked set for a maiden triumph on Europe’s biggest stage after Kai Havertz’s sixth-minute opener and a first hour spent smothering PSG’s vaunted attack.
However, the final became chaotic once PSG’s Ousmane Dembele equalised with a penalty in the 65th minute, the pace turning frantic before exhaustion took the match to a shootout.
Under Luis Enrique, PSG have won the six shootouts they have contested. The 56-year-old has now won 12 of the 13 one-off club finals he has overseen as a coach.
After brushing aside Premier League opposition on their way to the final by eliminating Chelsea and Liverpool, PSG were facing a much sterner test against an Arsenal team playing their second Champions League final after losing to Barcelona in 2006.
Mikel Arteta’s side took the lead when Marquinhos’ clearance bounced off Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard into the path of Havertz, who raced into the box and fired into the roof of the net.
He is the fourth player to score in two different European Cup or Champions League finals with two different clubs.
It was the nightmare scenario for PSG – trailing so early against the best defence in the competition.
Arsenal lived up to their reputation as the best team without the ball and looked perfectly content with the script, doubling up on Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and suffocating the usual danger brought by the Georgian magician on the left flank.
PSG’s Fabian Ruiz was unable to impose his usual rhythm in midfield and, despite monopolising possession for long spells, Luis Enrique’s side struggled to carve out clear-cut chances.
By halftime, PSG had attacked 32 times, Arsenal three times.
Arsenal, however, were flirting with the boundaries with their challenges, and Cristhian Mosquera brought down Kvaratskhelia in the area, with Dembele converting the penalty to equalise with his eighth goal in the competition.
MOMENTUM SHIFTS
The momentum had shifted.
Jurrien Timber and Viktor Gyokeres replaced Mosquera, and Martin Odegaard and Arsenal had a more attacking mindset but were exposed to PSG’s counterattacks, and at the end of one of them, Kvaratskhelia sped into the box, only for his left-footed effort to crash onto the outside of David Raya’s post.
After controlling the tempo in the first half, Arsenal played into PSG’s hands as the pace increased significantly, giving too much space to Kvaratskhelia or Bradley Barcola, who replaced the Georgian winger with seven minutes left.
In the 89th minute, PSG came close to giving the final an abrupt end as Vitinha’s shot grazed the top of the net. Barcola also shot over the bar after a counterattack with what would have been the last kick of the game.
With both teams having run out of steam, extra time was a cautious affair, and when referee Daniel Siebert blew his whistle, Arsenal had only managed one shot on target.
Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze missed his penalty before Raya saved Nuno Mendes’ attempt. Gabriel had to score to keep the Gunners’ hopes alive, but, facing PSG’s end, he fired over.
The French side were left to celebrate being European champions once again, with extra-time substitute Lucas Beraldo’s goal in the shootout proving to be the winner.
-Reuters
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Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique hailed his side’s resilience and consistency after the French champions retained the UEFA Champions League title with a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Arsenal following a 1-1 draw in Saturday’s final.
The Spaniard said PSG’s performances throughout the season justified their status as European champions despite being pushed to the limit by an impressive Arsenal side.
“Maybe today both teams deserved to win, but the way we played the whole season, I think we deserve to win the Champions League,” Enrique said after the match. “We are very happy and trying to be there next year – why not?”
PSG found themselves behind early after Arsenal struck first, forcing the holders to chase the game for much of the contest.
“The match started in the best way for them,” Enrique noted. “After that, they know how to defend. It was very tough. They are strong physically and very tough.”
The victory secured a second consecutive Champions League crown for PSG, a feat that delighted the coach.
“We are still champions, two in a row, it’s amazing,” he said. “Congratulations to Arsenal. It was very tough. They played great.”
Despite adding another major title to his growing collection, Enrique brushed aside suggestions that he was cementing a legendary status.
“Legend? I’m not interested in that,” he said.
PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi described the achievement as even more special than the club’s maiden Champions League triumph.
“The first one was special, but winning back-to-back titles is very special for us,” he said. “We want to win again. We don’t want to stop there.”
Midfielder Joao Neves echoed those sentiments, calling his move to Paris “the best decision” of his career.
“We’ve made history at PSG, we’re all delighted,” the Portuguese international said.
Young star Desire Doue also celebrated the historic achievement, insisting the team remains hungry for further success.
“We wanted more than anything to win a second title and make history once again,” he said. “We have to stay humble. We’re going to enjoy first, and after we’re going to work again because we want more.”
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