Aston Villa was 75 seconds away from something very good, fairly satisfying here. Plays, often overwhelmed and always the second best, Unai Emery and his players were nevertheless 2-1 in this game and therefore in this draw when we continued added time through three minutes.
A shortage of one goal to go back to Villa Park for the second stage of next week, given the way the game had disappeared, hope and optimism and a sense of anticipation. There would have been a famous European night ahead.
But then it all changed. A sharp pass through the heart of the Villa defense by Ousmane Dembele clearly sent Nuno Mendes and a neat side -step around goalkeeper Emi Martinez was everything needed to deliver goal number three. So a tight tie suddenly became a story that PSG sees with one foot in the semi -final.
Villa cannot say that they have been done hard. PSG was fantastic and exciting to see when they poured the ball forward.
This was sometimes less a football match and more an exercise in survival for the Premier League team. Villa's line of defense – often numbering no less than six – stood like a white wall that desperately tried to ward off psg's waves of blue.
PSG's Georgian broad player Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was absolutely enchanting, while the French teenager Doue was not far behind him. They scored the two PSG goals on either side of the tranquility that the French champions drove into the lead after Morgan Rogers Villa had somehow gave an advantage with a rare attack on the head in the 35th minute.
Those two PSG goals were fantastic. In fact breathtaking. If there had only been two, we would have preferred to talk about it, but now it is different. Target number three, much less spectacular, may have just done for Emery and his team.
PSG tends to treat every home game of Champions League as if it were the last they will ever play. The feeling of occasion is intentional and can feel overwhelming. Sometimes it is tempting to wonder if it works for or against the French champions.
Here, after a pre-game light display that felt like a mini-open ceremony, Enrique's team shot from the blocks such as Sprinters. This is a draw to last 180 minutes at least, but – just as they had against Liverpool in the last sixteen – PSG seemed desperate to win it within half an hour.
The home team was quick and extensive and competent. They wore a threat that was immediately and subtle at the same time. Villa defended deep – often in a row of five when Boubacar came in Kamara to help his central defenders – when the danger came from all over them.
PSG should probably have had a fine in the seventh minute while Kamara stumbled Kvaratskhelia. The PSG went down, but then, rather strange, bounced up again. Games was continued and Ousmane Dembele rode a shot high in the direction of Doel and EMI Martinez touched it.
Martinez in the Villa goal was happy to play the villain. He has the last history of the World Cup with the French and was booed during his warming. As soon as the game started, he was busy while PSG investigated and stuck, he tried to make his way to the goal and occasionally shoot them at a distance.
Overloaded both parties were disturbing Villa who just couldn't get off for a while. Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian, was a constant nuisance as indeed the central player Vitinha and, increasingly, goal scorer Doue.
Villa let Marcus Rashford play as a center ahead with John McGinn Supporting. The plan was probably to stretch PSG during the break. Villa struggled to implement that plan, but after 35 minutes they managed to do it and they scored with their first real attack.
McGinn was the architect and robbed Nuno Mendes of possession as a street feather in the French half. His side pass from right to left to Rashford opened the space and when Youri Tielemans was fed with the overlap, his low cross was converted from six meters by Rogers.
Liverpool also did this to PSG here, but their goal came much later. Here PSG had time to respond and did this almost immediately. Martinez rumbled a shot on his pole and gave a corner and when the ball was recycled to the nearby side, Doue curled a fairly special goal in the bottom of the bar from 19 meters with his right foot.
It was a fantastic goal and the 19-year-old scored almost four minutes later, finding space to work Martinez above his head and then ride a shot. When we reached the peace, the normal service was greatly resumed.
There would also be no longer any attention. In fact, PSG's football was even better in the early stages of the second half. The Enrique team was sensational for producing one of the best attacking football we have seen everywhere in Europe this season.
The goal that they scored in the 49th minute was a fairly amazing, even the efforts of Doue on the other side of the break overshadow.
Villa had replaced Matt Cash early and struggled with Axel Disasi during the break, but Kvaratskhelia ran to him and passed by as if he was not on the left before he delivered a scornful left foot high above Martinez and in the foot of the net near the nearby pole.
Could Martinez have done better? No keeper is happy to be defeated there. But before you asked the Argentinian if he could have managed if you want to ask him if he actually saw it. Speed ​​and strength were the most important ingredients.
So Villa was now in Paris and it felt like a long way home. PSG was unbridled, such as liquid gold in blue. Hard to predict, almost impossible to stop.
Kvaratskhelia was just beautiful. What a talent. Fed by Dembele In the 56th minute his shot was blocked by Disasi. He then put a George Best Feint and Body Swerve on Rogers to race on the field and start a movement that dived low to the right to push a shot by Achraf Hakimi away.