The key battles in the Champions League final

The Sun

6 days ago

PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN are the favourites to win their first UEFA Champions League title when the French club take on Inter Milan in Saturday's final.
Here AFP Sport looks at the battles which could define the game at the Allianz Arena in Munich:
Achraf Hakimi v Federico Dimarco
The final will be a particularly special occasion for Hakimi, PSG's Moroccan right-back who won the Serie A title with Inter in 2021.
Hakimi is possibly the best full-back in the world, certainly when it comes to attacking, and he has scored or set up 22 goals this season.
But could the space he leaves in behind on his frequent forays forward be exploited by Dimarco, Inter's rampaging left wing-back who has four goals and 11 assists across Serie A and the Champions League?
Dimarco has a key role to play in Inter's 3-5-2 formation, in which his attacking contribution is vital. However, he had a torrid time defensively up against Lamine Yamal in the semi-finals, certainly in the first leg in Barcelona.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia v Denzel Dumfries
Dumfries does the same job on the right as Dimarco on the left for Inter, with the Dutchman a marauding wing-back who offers so much to his side going forward -- he has scored 11 goals this season, including two in the first leg against Barcelona.
But Dumfries will also be charged with the task of muzzling Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian left-winger who joined PSG in January from Napoli having contributed to Antonio Conte's side denying Inter the Serie A title.
Kvaratskhelia is a familiar opponent for Inter -- he came up against them six times while at Napoli, but won just one of those games and has never scored past the Nerazzurri defence.
Marquinhos v Lautaro Martinez
The two captains will go head to head in a South American confrontation between PSG's Brazilian centre-back and Inter's Argentinian forward.
At 31, Marquinhos is the oldest player in the PSG team and has been at the club since 2013, when he joined from Roma as a teenager.
Marquinhos has therefore appeared in so many painful defeats for PSG in the Champions League over the last decade, and played in the 2020 final loss to Bayern Munich.
His experience is precious for a young side, while the 27-year-old Martinez is the main goal threat for Inter having netted 22 goals this season, including nine in Europe.
The duo have played against each other four times at international level, including in the 2021 Copa America final, when Martinez partnered Lionel Messi up front for Argentina in their 1-0 victory over Marquinhos and Brazil at the Maracana.
Ousmane Dembele v Marcus Thuram
Dembele is the leader of the PSG attack, the France winger having been transformed this season by Luis Enrique into a lethal finisher with 33 goals in all competitions.
If he can find the net and help PSG to victory, he may well become the favourite for this year's Ballon d'Or. That would be remarkable for a player who in the French national team is principally there to serve Kylian Mbappe, as he was last season at PSG.
In Inter's attack, Dembele's fellow France international Thuram is the foil for Martinez. With 18 goals in all competitions, this has been his most prolific campaign to date. Signed by Inter after the 2023 final, now he has the chance to go one further than father Lilian, a Champions League runner-up with Juventus in 2003.
Controlling midfield
PSG's midfield three sees Portuguese pocket dynamos Vitinha and Joao Neves team up with Fabian Ruiz, the elegant Spaniard whose tireless work rate can almost go unnoticed.
Vitinha makes the team tick and is the designated penalty taker. The energetic Neves, signed last summer from Benfica, starts the press and is also surprisingly useful in the air. Ruiz, scorer of a precious goal in the semi-final second leg against Arsenal, is the most experienced of the three.
The star in the middle for Inter is Nicolo Barella, who is joined by Turkish international Hakan Calhanoglu, one of the best set-piece takers in world football.
Completing the trio is Henrikh Mkhitaryan, a veteran at 36 who made his Champions League debut for Shakhtar Donetsk 15 years ago. He may struggle to last 90 minutes.