European Super Football

A closer look at this season's Champions League and its new format Paris Saint-Germain have secured their first Champions League title, bringing to a close a season marked by the most dramatic revamp of the competition in more than 30 years. Author | Peter Grainger Inter Milan fans in the Champions League semi-final Since the introduction of the group stage in 1991–92, the tournament had largely followed a familiar pattern: teams placed in groups of four, facing each other home and away before progressing to a knockout stage. This season broke from tradition. Under the new format, 36 teams took part in a single league phase. Each club played eight matches against eight different opponents, four at home and four away. The league phase concluded at the end of January, followed by the usual knockout rounds. But the question remains: did it work? PSG will say it did. The French champions lifted the trophy in Munich despite finishing 15th in the league phase and having to come throu...

PSG 5 - 0 Inter Milan An extraordinary night in Munich saw PSG thrash Inter Milan to win their first Champions League Author | Jack L Stadium | Allianz Arena The French champions produced a dominant display to dismantle Inter Milan in what will be remembered as one of the most one-sided finals in the competition's history. Achraf Hakimi opened the scoring after just 12 minutes, setting the tone for a ruthless performance from the French champions. Desire Doue doubled the advantage with a powerful finish at the near post, before completing his brace shortly after the hour mark with a clinical counter-attacking move. READ MORE |  Champions League: 2024/2025 Luis Enrique’s side were relentless, harrying Inter into submission. Their fourth came when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia calmly slotted past Yann Sommer after a well-timed run. Luis Enrique is now the sixth coach to win this tournament with two different clubs, having previously triumphed with Barcelona in 2015. He was watching ...

The journey to the 2025 Champions League final PSG face Inter in Saturday’s Champions League. How did we get there? Let's explore some of the key moments from this season's competition. Starting with the semi-finals and working backwards. Author | Josh D Semi-finals second leg PSG 2 - 1 Arsenal (PSG won 3-1 on aggregate) Another trophyless season for Arteta’s side. Their hopes of reaching a first Champions League final since 2006 came to an end in Paris. Click here to read more reaction from London Super News . Did PSG deserve this relatively comfortable result? Inter Milan 4 - 3 Barcelona (Inter won 7-6 on aggregate) Inter Milan staged a remarkable late comeback to beat Barcelona in one of the most thrilling Champions League semi-finals in recent memory. Semi-finals first leg Barcelona 3 - 3 Inter Milan Barcelona twice came from behind to earn a draw against Inter Milan in a pulsating six-goal Champions League semi-final first leg, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of ...

PSG 2 - 1 Arsenal (PSG won 3-1 on aggregate) Arsenal’s hopes of reaching a first Champions League final since 2006 came to an end in Paris Author - DJ Stadium - Parc des Princes Mikel Arteta’s side arrived needing to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first leg, but once again ran into the formidable presence of Gianluigi Donnarumma. The Italian goalkeeper, outstanding in the reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium, delivered another superb performance with a series of saves that kept Arsenal at bay during a frenetic opening spell. Donnarumma was alert to block Gabriel Martinelli's close-range effort, then produced an even more impressive stop to push away a low, driven shot from Martin Ødegaard as the visitors looked to strike early. Against the run of play, PSG took the lead on the night after 27 minutes. Fabian Ruiz collected a loose clearance from Thomas Partey and unleashed a speculative effort from 20 yards that deflected past David Raya and into the net. READ MORE: Rea...

Inter Milan 4 - 3 Barcelona (Inter won 7-6 on aggregate) Inter Milan staged a remarkable late comeback to beat Barcelona in one of the most thrilling Champions League semi-finals in recent memory. Author - Josh T Stadium - San Siro With just two minutes of stoppage time remaining, Inter were trailing 3-2 on the night and facing elimination. But veteran defender Francesco Acerbi powered a cross into the roof of the net to draw the tie level, tearing off his shirt in celebration as the San Siro erupted. Moments of high drama continued into extra time, where substitute Davide Frattesi curled a superb left-footed shot into the bottom corner to win it for the Italian champions. He climbed a security fence to celebrate with Inter’s fans, who had witnessed an astonishing turnaround. Barcelona had appeared set for their first final in a decade, having come from 2-0 down on the night to lead 3-2, echoing their fightback in the first leg. Teenage forward Lamine Yamal came close to forcing pe...

Barcelona 3 - 3 Inter Milan Barcelona twice came from behind to earn a draw against Inter Milan in a pulsating six-goal Champions League semi-final first leg, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of next week’s return fixture in Milan. Author - Jack L Stadium - Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys The visitors stunned the hosts within 30 seconds when Marcus Thuram diverted Denzel Dumfries’ low cross into the net with a deft backheel, registering the fastest goal ever scored in a semi-final of the competition. Dumfries then doubled Inter’s lead after 20 minutes with an acrobatic volley that silenced the Montjuïc crowd and left Barcelona facing an early uphill task. However, the irrepressible Lamine Yamal soon dragged his side back into the contest. The teenager weaved inside from the right, jinking past several defenders before curling a sublime left-footed shot in off the post to halve the deficit. READ MORE: Champions League news and stories Yamal remained at the centre of Barcelona’s a...

Arsenal 0 - 1 PSG Arsenal must come from behind if they are to reach the Champions League final, after Ousmane Dembele's early goal gave Paris Saint-Germain a first-leg advantage at the Emirates Stadium. Author -  DJ Stadium - Emirates Stadium Dembele struck just four minutes in, sweeping a low finish past David Raya after being picked out by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. The goal capped a dominant opening spell from the visitors, who pressed high and carved out further chances, including a strong effort from teenager Desire Doue that Raya did well to stop. Once again, PSG were indebted to Gianluigi Donnarumma. The Italian goalkeeper, who produced key performances in earlier rounds against Liverpool and Aston Villa, was in commanding form, denying Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard with sharp saves either side of half-time. Arsenal grew into the contest and thought they had equalised when Mikel Merino headed in from a Declan Rice free-kick, but a lengthy VAR review ruled the goal...

Aston Villa 3 - 2 PSG (PSG won 5-4 on aggregate) Aston Villa came agonisingly close to pulling off a famous comeback against Paris Saint-Germain, only to fall short on a night of high drama and raw emotion in the Champions League. Author - Thomas J Stadium - Villa Park   Trailing 3-1 from the first leg, Villa’s hopes of reaching the semi-finals were dealt a huge blow early on, as two goals in the opening 30 minutes appeared to settle the tie. Emiliano Martínez’s uncharacteristic error gifted Achraf Hakimi the opener, before Nuno Mendes added a second to leave the hosts needing four unanswered goals. But Villa, roared on by a ferocious home crowd, refused to lie down. Youri Tielemans gave them a lifeline with a deflected effort just after the half-hour mark, and from there, the match descended into glorious chaos. READ MORE:  Champions League: 2024/2025 READ MORE:  Barca qualify despite scare against Dortmund The second half was pure theatre. John McGinn ignited the co...

Borussia Dortmund 3 - 1 Barcelona (Barcelona won 5-3 on aggregate) Borussia Dortmund came agonisingly close to pulling off a remarkable Champions League comeback, but their spirited second-leg display against Barcelona was not enough to overturn the heavy damage inflicted in the first leg. Author - Josh T Stadium - Signal Iduna Park The Bundesliga side had been left with a mountain to climb following a chastening 4–0 defeat at the Camp Nou, a result that had all but booked Barcelona’s place in the semi-finals for the first time since 2019. Yet Dortmund refused to roll over. Led by a stunning hat-trick from Serhou Guirassy, they produced a breathless display in front of their home crowd, injecting genuine jeopardy into what had seemed a foregone conclusion. What does all of this mean for Barca? Despite their valiant efforts and a stirring performance, it is Barcelona who advance to the last four. It marks their first appearance at this stage since their infamous capitulation to Live...

PSG 3 - 1 Aston Villa Paris Saint-Germain overturned a first-half deficit with three exceptional goals to see off Aston Villa in an entertaining first leg at the Parc des Princes.  Author - James L Stadium - Parc des Princes . Morgan Rogers gave the visitors a surprise lead, but second-half finishes from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Nuno Mendes, along with a first-half equaliser from Désiré Doué, gave the Ligue 1 champions a deserved victory. A closer look at what happened in Paris Having wrapped up the French title at the weekend, PSG looked sharp from the off. Ousmane Dembélé returned to the starting line-up and quickly tested Emiliano Martínez with a powerful early effort. Villa, to their credit, weathered the early storm and nearly fell behind when Vitinha curled narrowly over from the edge of the area. Then came the opener, and it was the Premier League side who struck first with a goal very much against the run of play. John McGinn won the ball deep in his own half and...

Arsenal 3 - 0 Real Madrid Declan Rice lit up the Emirates with two superb free-kicks as Arsenal cruised to a 3–0 victory over Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. Author - DJ Stadium - Emirates Stadium Rice had never scored from a free-kick in his career before this match, delivered two moments of brilliance in the second half to put Mikel Arteta’s side in firm control of the tie. Ahead of kick-off, Arteta had called on the home support to arrive early and generate a big-game atmosphere. The fans responded, and so did the players, as Arsenal made an energetic start and put Madrid under early pressure with a series of threatening crosses. It wasn’t until the 20th minute that the visitors created anything of note, with Vinícius Júnior curling a shot narrowly wide. After the break, Arsenal turned their dominance into goals. The breakthrough came in the 58th minute, when Rice bent a free-kick around the wall and beyond Thibaut Courtois to open the scori...

Bayern Munich 1 - 2 Inter Milan Inter Milan secured a crucial 2-1 victory over Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at the Allianz Arena. Author - Matt F Stadium - Allianz Arena The German side dominated the early stages, with England captain Harry Kane striking the post in the first half. However, it was Inter who broke the deadlock in the 38th minute. Marcus Thuram displayed exceptional skill to flick the ball into the path of Lautaro Martínez, who finished emphatically into the roof of the net with the outside of his boot. Bayern responded in the 85th minute through veteran forward Thomas Müller, who announced last week that he will leave the club this summer after a 25-year association. Müller converted from close range following a low cross from Konrad Laimer. Inter had the final say just three minutes later. A swift counter-attack culminated in Carlos Augusto delivering a precise cross, which substitute Davide Frattesi turned in from close ra...

Arsenal v Real Madrid Preview Los Blancos will make their first-ever competitive appearance at the Emirates Stadium. Author - DJ While the 15-time winners have beaten 111 teams in the competition’s history, Arsenal are not one of them courtesy of their famous last-16 success in the only previous meaningful meetings between the teams back in 2006. While Arteta's looking to reach the final four for just a third time, Madrid’s love affair with the competition sees them looking to make that a reality for the fifth consecutive season.  Real Madrid head into the first leg knowing that no team has beaten Arsenal in North London in 10 Champions League games since their return to the competition last season. An extension of that run would put them in a superb place before a visit to the Spanish capital eight days later. Who remembers this match from 2006? Source | Arsenal YouTube A closer look at how Real Madrid are doing Not since the 2003-04 season have Real Madrid been knocked out ...

Barcelona 3 - 1 Benfica (Barcelona won 4-1 on aggregate) Lamine Yamal stole the show once again as Barcelona booked their place in the Champions League quarter-finals with a composed victory over Benfica. Author - Jamie P Stadium - Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys The teenager produced a moment of brilliance to set up Raphinha for the opener before outdoing himself with a stunning strike to restore Barcelona’s lead on the night and extend their aggregate advantage to 3-1. Nicolás Otamendi’s towering header had briefly given Benfica hope after cancelling out Raphinha’s opener, but Yamal’s magic proved decisive. Raphinha then sealed the win with a clinical finish into the bottom corner. There was a moment of confusion over the Brazilian’s second goal, as it appeared play had been pulled back for an Otamendi foul on the edge of the area. But after a VAR review, the goal was given and Otamendi’s yellow card was rescinded. Barca v Benfica highlights from TNT Sports youtu.be/jlshweWf...

Liverpool 0 - 1 PSG (Finished 1-1 on aggregate) PSG won 4-1 on penalties Liverpool’s hopes of European glory were beaten dramatically as Paris Saint-Germain edged them out on penalties at Anfield, ending their Champions League campaign. Author - William G Stadium - Anfield PSG, needing to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg in Paris, showed their growing maturity under Luis Enrique, knocking out a Liverpool side widely seen as strong contenders for the title. Ousmane Dembélé’s early strike set the tone for the comeback, with Liverpool struggling to break down a disciplined PSG, who remained a constant threat on the counter. Over the two legs, PSG were fully deserving of their victory , with goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma proving the hero in the shootout. The Italian made crucial saves from Darwin Núñez and Curtis Jones before Désiré Doué buried the decisive penalty, sparking jubilant celebrations among the visiting fans. Liverpool had begun with intent, looking to build on t...

PSV Eindhoven 1 - 7 Arsenal Arsenal put one foot in the Champions League quarter-finals with a ruthless demolition of PSV. They can still finish this season with a trophy. Author - DJ Stadium - Philips Stadion Mikel Arteta’s side were in complete control from the outset, racing into a three-goal lead before half-time before adding four more in a dominant second-half display. With a trip to Madrid now looming, progression to the next stage looks all but secured. PSV had an early glimmer of hope when Ismael Saibari struck the crossbar, but Arsenal quickly took charge. Jurrien Timber opened the scoring in the 18th minute, and within moments, 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri doubled the lead, finishing emphatically after a sharp cutback from Myles Lewis-Skelly. There was a moment of fortune for Lewis-Skelly, who had already been booked, when he escaped further punishment for a foul on Richard Ledezma. Sensing the risk, Arteta swiftly withdrew him, bringing on Riccardo Calafiori before the bre...