How Dembele and Vitinha outsmarted Arsenal as Odegaard and Timber struggled to show up in biggest game of season vs PSG

Scottish Sun

30-04-2025

Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN claimed a 1-0 win in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final with Arsenal.
Ousmane Dembele struck after just four minutes with a superb first-time finish to give the French side the advantage to take back to the Parc des Princes next week.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
27
PSG claimed a 1-0 win in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final with Arsenal
Credit: Getty
27
Ousmane Dembele grabbed the only goal of the game in the fourth minute
Credit: Getty
In the latest episode of Tactics Exposed, SunSport's Dean Scoggins ran the rule over the Emirates clash - and picked out five key tactical talking points...
The match went the way I was expecting - I thought PSG were the better side and their plan came off better.
But we shouldn't overlook the missing Thomas Partey factor - he will be big in the second leg.
Both goalkeepers made great saves.
The last ten minutes were key: if PSG took one of those late chances, we would be talking about a real, real uphill struggle for Arsenal.
The Gunners stayed in it, created chances of their own and it was a great watch.
1. OU LA LA
I said in the preview Tactics Exposed show one of the midfielders would drop into defence, Achraf Hakimi would go out, Nuno Mendes pushed out and they drew the press before Dembele dropped deep to collect the ball, turn and go.
They did it four or five times and it wasn't until half-time that Arsenal worked it out.
Join SUN CLUB for the Arsenal Files every Friday plus
in-depth coverage and exclusives from The Emirates
Having Declan Rice and Mikel Merino dragged out allowed space for the false No9 to come in between and receive the ball in areas where he can't be marked - Dembele was brilliant in the first half.
Someone - either William Saliba or Jakub Kiwior - needs to go out with Dembele, he can't be given the freedom of the Emirates in midfield.
Wayne Rooney and Thierry Henry give their verdict on Arsenal's defeat to PSG
27
Dembele was given too much space on the edge of the area
Credit: Getty
27
PSG lined up in a 4-3-3 formation
Credit: SunSport
27
Dembele dropped in as a false No9
Credit: SunSport
27
He was not tracked by either Arsenal centre-back
Credit: SunSport
27
That allowed him to pick up the ball in midfield
Credit: SunSport
27
He then drove forwards on the attack
Credit: SunSport
Then with the goal, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia holds the width but Jurrien Timber stays narrow before squaring him up on the edge of the area.
Declan Rice goes and doubles up, Saliba is free but Merino gets back into the box before the shot - but the Spaniard doesn't occupy the space Rice vacated.
Rice is damned if he does, damned if he doesn't - Merino is the one who doesn't do the midfielder's job and cover.
Dembele's little side-step to his left was genius, too.
27
Dembele benefited from Thomas Partey's suspension
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
For the goal, he played the ball out wide to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
The Frenchman then got on the end of the pull back
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
Declan Rice went out to double up with Jurrien Timber
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
Mikel Merino worked his way back into the area
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
But he did not get close enough to Dembele
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
2. TIMBERRRR!
Timber had a really tough night and committed four fouls in the first 20 minutes and didn't get a yellow card.
The referee was very poor for both teams and didn't help the game as a spectacle.
PSG force you to isolate full-backs with wingers - do you go and engage or hold off?
27
Jurrien Timber struggled to cope with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Credit: Getty
It wasn't just Timber's fault because PSG's midfield make a diamond shape and Arsenal's midfield weren't sure who was supposed to block the lane.
After those fouls, Bukayo Saka did a great job of screening, coming in off the touchline to help out but that also meant Saka was not in the position he wants to be when Arsenal won the ball back.
Of Arsenal's attacks, 44 per cent came down the right-hand side, but only ten per cent of their shots came from that channel.
PSG starved Saka in the position he likes to pick up because Timber was struggling.
27
Bukayo Saka was forced to play more infield than usual
Credit: SunSport
27
PSG's system makes use of their strong midfield and attack
Credit: SunSport
27
Arsenal attack largely down the right wing
Credit: SunSport
27
Only ten per cent of their shots came from that area
Credit: SunSport
3. UN PETIT FRERE
Vitinha was absolutely fantastic.
At any level of football from grassroots to elite, you can see when a midfielder runs the game at their pace and for the first 30 minutes at least, Vatinha did that.
If he wanted to slow it down, he did. If he wanted to hit Arsenal quickly, bang, they were on the attack.
Vitinha actually had a similar number of touches as the anonymous Martin Odegaard but it was the areas he got the ball and acting as the bounce man.
In the build-up to the goal, he got his body in the way to ping the ball back to the defence and that sort of play is unbelievable.
It was like PSG had 12 men.
27
Vitinha orchestrated things with a masterclass performance
Credit: Getty
27
He was the overload man in every area of the pitch
Credit: SunSport
When they are three at the back, with three Arsenal men pressing, he makes it four for a 4v3.
Then he moves into midfield, Arsenal drop into a 4-4-2 shape out of possession and he makes it a five in midfield for PSG.
Then when they attack, there are five going forward with only forward with only four defenders and he is the one joining in.
He is the overload man in all three areas and was the best player on the pitch, especially in the first half.
Vitinha joins the play up. He is a genius.
He is like Alexis Mac Allister on the ball and Dominik Szoboszlai off the ball.
Arsenal need to work out how to get hold of him in the second leg.
4. ODE OH DEAR
I'm not sure what has been going on with Odegaard for the last ten or 12 games - his level has really dropped off.
He relies on Saka stretching the game to give him space which I've already explained was not the case but he had a really off night on the biggest night of the season.
Arsenal have leaders all over the pitch but for me, Rice should be captain.
27
Martin Odegaard failed to turn up for the biggest game of the season
Credit: Getty
27
27
Odegaard got the timings of his presses wrong
Credit: SunSport
27
That almost caught Arsenal out as Bradley Barcola dragged wide
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
Odegaard got the press wrong against PSG, the team follow his trigger and he has been brilliant at it for years and it's how Arsenal can set up in a 4-4-2 out of possession.
But on Tuesday he kept going at the wrong time because Vitinha was dragging him into positions he didn't want to be in which opened spaces up in midfield - which is where the goal came from.
Odegaard was getting stuck in a half No8, half No10 role and it was epitomised by the Bradley Barcola chance.
5. RAYA HOPE
The save from Desire Doue when he got down low to his right... incredible stop.
Gianluigi Donnarumma made two world-class saves at the other end but Raya was crucial for Arsenal.
What he also did was take pretty much all their free-kicks in their own half right up to the halfway line - it was almost old school sending it long.
People may criticise the long-ball tactic but it was the right tactic because PSG were vulnerable with the diagonal long ball and the bouncing ball which came from Raya's excellent distribution.
It forced chances, they could have scored and it also led to corners where we know Arsenal are dangerous.
Aside from that, Arsenal carried the ball really well and got out of positions well to feed Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.
Myles Lewis-Skelly was excellent again, his one-v-one defending and duels are as good as anyone I've seen for years in that position.
Hakimi got very little joy in duels against him and where Timber could not work out what to do with Kvaratskhelia, Lewis-Skelly did miles better with Doue and Hakimi.
That forced Doue to come inside, so Lewis-Skelly came inside and inverted and bolstered Arsenal's numbers in the middle.
This is 1-0, it is half-time and this is not done.
27
David Raya made a superb stop to deny Desire Doue
Credit: SunSport / Amazon Prime Video
27
His long kicks upfield were a throwback but successful tactic
Credit: Getty