In one year: What's behind PSG's Champions League win

French PSG defeated Inter 5-0 in the Champions League final on May 31 and won the main European Cup for the first time in its history. The triumph of the Paris club will change football. The victory of Luis Enrique's team shows that money and superstars no longer play a decisive role. Read more about this, as well as about Matvey Safonov's magnificent debut season, in the Izvestia article.

Well-deserved success

But I really wanted to believe that calmness and self-confidence could defeat the class! That a coaching genius can compensate for transfers worth tens of millions of euros. But the score for these fantasies is on the scoreboard. He's devastating. This does not mean that Inter's approach is not working. In the context of the Italian crisis and a limited budget, the club reached the Champions League final for the second time in three years — how can we say that it is impossible to break the system and win the main European cup with 35-year-old players in the squad?

Everything is possible, but more often reality wins out. PSG is better, more effective and more effective. And if you ask yourself the question "Who deserves to win the Champions League the most this season?" — the answer will be obvious. Yes, there was a brave Barcelona, a confident Real Madrid, a well-coordinated Liverpool, and a balanced Inter. But PSG is a symbiosis of beauty and pragmatism, a team that combines equally the most important components for success. Beauty is available, football players who can work magic are also here, one of the most progressive coaches of our time is on the sidelines. But, most importantly, there were no negative distortions in Paris at the most important part of the season — in the spring. This is a celebration of harmony, which, without a doubt, every club on the planet strives for.

PSG had a lot of questions at the general stage of the Champions League, it was not for nothing that they had to fight to the last for the right to enter the playoffs. But before our eyes, the coolest team in Europe has been formed. With its weak points, but falling in love with the organicity of art. We saw that it doesn't take years to create something outstanding. The question is, how fast will you take the right steps in the right direction?

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Matvey Safonov's PSG is close to winning the Champions League, Alexander Golovin's Monaco will play there next year.

And in the Louvre, one can doubt: what is this painting doing here? What's wrong with her? But the overall impression will still remain indelible. This is a unique collection of the beautiful things that humanity has absorbed. PSG is the same. If there is a beauty of football, then the Parisian club demonstrated it in the Champions League playoffs. This is tactical harmony, individual skill, and character. Inter is about overcoming, about success in spite of external circumstances. But in the French capital, they found a recipe for the perfect garden. There are no unique instances in it that make your head spin. There is no Messi, no Neymar, no Mbappe. But the symbiosis of properly selected flowers forms a square that you want to walk around and just enjoy.

PSG's victory in the final was definitely not a sensation — rather, it would have been an Inter triumph. But did this make the final result any less beautiful? The answer is obvious. And it is doubly gratifying that the Paris club achieved its first international triumph in its history, moving away from the vulgar script in computer simulations with the purchase of the most stellar players on the market. I didn't want to root for the old PSG for this very reason — this is the way of the notorious glors! But Enrique's team is a completely different matter. Yes, tens of millions of euros continue to be spent, but the concept has changed — instead of investing in the most brilliant lots, the bet is on those who fit into the coaching system.

The Seer

It is gratifying that Matvey Safonov received the gold medal among the winners. The Russian goalkeeper joined PSG in the summer of 2024 and gave an interview to journalist Nobel Arustamian shortly after the transfer. In it, the legendary Krasnodar graduate said an absolutely sensational thing at that time. "The Champions League? Let's win! It would be great if PSG took the European Cup in the same year as Krasnodar's RPL championship," Safonov said. The result at the end of the season: Krasnodar is the champion of the Russian Premier League, PSG is the winner of the Champions League. Is Safonov a visionary?

To be honest, our compatriots don't win the Champions League very often. Safonov is only the fifth after these players.:

Igor Dobrovolsky, Marseille, 1992/93 season;

Vladimir Bout, Borussia, 1996/97 season;

Dmitry Alenichev, Porto, 2003/04 season;

Denis Cheryshev, Real Madrid, 2016/17 season.

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Matvey Safonov's PSG will play Arsenal in the Champions League, and Nikita Khaykin's Buda-Glimt will play Tottenham in the Europa League.

In total, Matvey became the 11th Russian to win the European Cup final. At the same time, Safonov continued a good tradition: if our compatriot plays in a decisive match, his team does not lose.

Let's note for the record: Safonov received the Champions League winner's medal, not just sitting on the bench and covering Gianluigi Donnarumma. In the 2024/25 season, he took part in two matches of the tournament — against Girona (1-0) and Bayern Munich (1-0). Matvey conducted both meetings completely.

Safonov is not just a Champions League winner. He is also the owner of a rare achievement for football — a quadruple! In addition to the main European Cup, the Russian goalkeeper, along with PSG, won the French championship, the Cup and the Super Cup this season. At the same time, the Cup is almost entirely the merit of Matthew. Safonov played five of the six possible matches, including the final.

In total, in his debut season, the Russian played 17 matches (1508 minutes) for PSG, conceded 13 goals and played seven games to zero.