PSG thrashes Liverpool on penalties to reach champions league quarter-finals

Paris Saint-Germain PSG  secured their place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday after a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Liverpool, following a 1-1 draw at Anfield that ended 1-1 on aggregate.

Ousmane Dembele’s early strike in the 12th minute leveled the tie at 1-1 overall, tapping in to bring PSG back into contention.

Both teams missed several opportunities throughout the match to break the deadlock, with the winner set to face either Aston Villa or Club Brugge in the next round.

After 90 minutes and extra time failed to produce a winner, the match went to penalties. PSG triumphed 4-1 in the shootout, with Mohamed Salah converting Liverpool’s first and only penalty.

PSG were perfect from the spot, with Vitinha, Sergio Ramos, and Dembele all successfully scoring their attempts.

Liverpool, however, saw Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones miss consecutive penalties, and it was left to Desire Doue to score the decisive penalty for PSG.

The penalty shootout drama was made possible by a stellar performance from PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who saved two of Liverpool’s spot-kicks, ensuring PSG’s progression to the next round.

Extra-Time Drama

The additional 30 minutes saw PSG come close to winning it in normal time, with Lucas Beraldo heading just wide of the left post and Desire Doue seeing another effort narrowly miss the target.

Liverpool responded in the second period of extra time, bringing on Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott to find a breakthrough.

However, PSG remained resilient, with goalkeeper Donnarumma making key saves, including denying Dembele from close range.

A key moment came in the 111th minute when Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate was forced off due to injury, with Wataru Endo coming on to fill in.

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As the game progressed without a winner, penalties would ultimately decide the fate of the tie, and PSG emerged victorious with a perfect record from the spot.