The Champions League semi-finals are set. There will be two teams from Ligue 1 and two from the Bundesliga competing for a place in the 2019/20 final. Paris-Saint Germain take on RB Leipzig this evening, while Olympique Lyonnais face Bayern Munich tomorrow night.
The last time that there were no Spanish and no English representatives in the Champions League semi-final was the 1995/96 season.
As for history that actually involves the teams in this year’s semi-final, this is the first time two French clubs have made it into the final four of the competition.
The Champions League Semi-Finals: A New Dawn or An Old Favourite?
A New Team in the Final
The winner between Paris-Saint Germain and RB Leipzig will be competing in their first-ever Champions League final.
The last time a French team reached the final was back in 2004 when AS Monaco suffered a 3-0 defeat against Jose Mourinho’s FC Porto. The last time a French team won the competition was 11 years previous when Olympique de Marseille saw off AC Milan in the 1993 final.
As for PSG, this is the furthest they have got in the competition since 1995. Back then, Les Parisiens lost 3-0 against AC Milan over the two legs.
Since 2013, the Ligue 1 side have failed to progress past the quarter-finals. In the last three seasons, PSG fell at the round of 16 stage, having reached the last eight in the four seasons prior.
Whichever way you look at it, the meteoric rise of Leipzig is phenomenal. The club was only founded 11 years ago in 2009, and have worked their way up from the fourth tier of German football to the Bundesliga.
Although they have been bankrolled by the corporate company, their achievements need to be respected. Die Roten Bullen have only been in the top flight for four years, with their best-ever European charge coming in 2018, when they were eliminated in the quarter-final of the Europa League after defeat against Marseille.
Heavyweights Against Suprise Package
Although PSG and Leipzig will make history, there is little surprise that either side have reached the semi-finals. Meanwhile, for Olympique Lyonnais, there is some amazement.
This will be the second time that the Ligue 1 side have reached the semi-final in their history, having done so ten years ago. Ironically, their journey ended with a 4-0 aggregate defeat against tomorrows opponents, Bayern Munich.
That said, Rudi Garcia’s side saw off two of this year’s favourites in the knockout stages, overcoming Juventus and Manchester City respectively.
Five-times winners Bayern Munich will be the favourites for this clash. The Bundesliga outfit have a historic alliance with the competition.
The last time Die Bayern reached this stage, they saw off Barcelona with a 4-3 aggregate. In the other semi-final, Robert Lewandowski became the only player to score four in a semi-final game as Dortmund saw off Real Madrid. Bayern went on to win the final against their Bundesliga rivals.
Of course, Lewandowski now turns out for Bayern. The Pole is the competitions top scorer this season with an incredible 14 goals. He is also the fourth-highest goalscorer in the Champions League with 67 goals, behind Raul, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
This will be Bayern’s 12th Champions League semi-final clash – 20 as the total of European Championships – with Thomas Muller having featured in 14 of those games.
However, Bayern have a mixed record at this stage. The Bundesliga side have lost six semi-finals, progressing to the final on four occasions. But prior to their 2013 success, Die Bayern lost three of their previous four with defeats against Chelsea, Inter Milan and, famously, Manchester United. Their other win came in 2001 against Valencia.
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