Former Spartak forward Valery Kechinov discussed Bayern Munich’s 1/8 final Champions League victory over Paris Saint-Germain, highlighting the sequence of the two legs. Bayern won the away match 1–0 and completed the tie with a 2–0 home win, a result that underscored Munich’s control across the clash. Kechinov noted that Paris seemed to hold a slight edge before the second leg’s kickoff, but the hosts asserted themselves after the restart, flipping the momentum in their favor.
The first leg showcased Bayern’s ability to dictate play, with PSG struggling to impose their rhythm and pace. The absence of Kylian Mbappé in the initial match clearly altered Paris’s dynamics, as the French side looked markedly different when he did feature in the return encounter. In the second game, Mbappé’s presence appeared to elevate PSG’s intensity, yet Bayern responded with an approach that mirrored their performance in Paris, pressing high and taking advantage of the chances that came their way. In Kechinov’s view, Bayern moved through the match with a clear understanding of how to translate their early initiative into a decisive advantage after the break. The balance of the tie shifted as Bayern demonstrated practical, controlled aggression rather than reckless urgency, a shift that helped them seal the aggregate result.
From a broader perspective, the statistics around the tie reflected a notable trend for PSG. This year marked a first in their Champions League history as they did not convert an own goal, a stat that nevertheless did not prevent Bayern from maintaining pressure and converting their opportunities into scores. Across the two legs, Bayern’s defense kept Paris at bay while their attacking line produced the necessary breakthroughs, with decisive moments that changed the course of the contest. The opening goal in the second match, delivered by Eric Choupo-Moting in the 61st minute, demonstrated PSG’s vulnerability to sustained pressure and the importance of capitalizing on set plays and quick transitions once the game opened up. Serge Gnabry later added to Bayern’s lead, capping a performance that reflected the team’s atmosphere of confidence and precision on the night. These factors contributed to a result that aligned with the expectations of many observers who had anticipated a test of Bayern’s depth and resilience.
Retired Spartak defender and former Russian national team stalwart Evgeny Bushmanov offered his assessment of PSG as a squad of top-tier individual players rather than a cohesive unit. He observed that while Paris boasted a wealth of talent on the field, the absence of a unifying, shared game plan limited their effectiveness against a well-drilled opponent like Bayern. The match demonstrated the persistent importance of teamwork, tactical discipline, and execution in European knockout football, where individual quality must be supported by collective organization to prevail. In that sense, the tie served as a case study in how two footballing philosophies can collide and what happens when one side translates its strengths into consistent, high-level performance across both legs.