Paris Saint Germain’s Ousmane Dembele celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Champions League semifinal first leg soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at Emirates Stadium in London, England, Tuesday, April 29, 2025. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
PSG’s head coach Luis Enrique applauds the fans at the end of the Champions League semifinal first leg soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at Arsenal Stadium in London, England, Tuesday, April 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
PSG striker Ousmane Demb茅l茅 fit to face Arsenal in Champions League semifinal
PARIS (AP) 鈥 Paris Saint-Germain striker Ousmane Demb茅l茅 has recovered from a slight hamstring problem and will be in the squad taking on Arsenal in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal on Wednesday.
Paris Saint Germain’s Ousmane Dembele celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Champions League semifinal first leg soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at Emirates Stadium in London, England, Tuesday, April 29, 2025. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
PARIS (AP) 鈥 Paris Saint-Germain striker Ousmane Demb茅l茅 has recovered from a slight hamstring problem and will be in the squad taking on Arsenal in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal on Wednesday.
Coach Luis Enrique said Demb茅l茅, who scored the winner in has been training with his teammates for two days.
“I have him at my disposal tomorrow,鈥 Enrique said on Tuesday.
Demb茅l茅 was injured during the first leg and rested over the weekend when PSG lost to Strasbourg 2-1 in Ligue 1. Enrique heavily rotated his squad with the match against the Gunners in mind.
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Demb茅l茅鈥檚 goal against Arsenal was his eighth in nine Champions League appearances since the start of the year.
PSG defender Achraf Hakimi said he believes Demb茅l茅 has recovered well.
鈥淗e really wants to play,鈥 Hakimi said. 鈥淥usmane is a different kind of player. He makes you want to go and watch the game in the stadium, he can change the course of a match at any moment, he鈥檚 a genius with the ball. We鈥檙e delighted to have him back.鈥
According to UEFA statistics, PSG has won 18 of the 19 ties in which it won a first leg away, while Arsenal has never overturned a home first leg defeat in European competition, losing all five ties. Enrique, however, isn’t counting on history ahead of the match at the Parc des Princes.
鈥淲e鈥檙e bound to suffer because our opponents don鈥檛 have a favorable result,鈥 Enrique told reporters. “We need to match our performance as closely as possible in the first leg to win the return leg and stay true to our ideas.鈥
Both teams are looking for a first Champions League title, and second final. PSG lost to Borussia Dortmund at this stage last year. The French side lost to Bayern Munich in its only Champions League final in 2020, while Arsenal was runner-up to Barcelona in 2006.
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