Balls come true: Safonov can rewrite the Russian history of the Champions League

Paris Saint-Germain's Russian goalkeeper Matvey Safonov is one step away from reaching the Champions League final. The return match with Bayern Munich could lead him to the main match of the season, which will be held on May 30 in Budapest at the Puskas Arena. But on May 6, our 27-year-old goalkeeper will face one of the most important games of his career — the semi-finals of the main European club tournament. The result can directly affect the future career of a Russian. Read more about the prospects for Safonov's release in the Izvestia article.

PSG have an advantage

The Parisian club is approaching the return game against Bayern Munich, albeit with a minimal, but still an advantage in the score. The first match, which took place on April 28 at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, ended in a real shootout (5-4). In this scenario, neither Safonov nor his counterpart Manuel Neuer are particularly enviable. But there was a triumph of attack with a complete lack of organization in defense.

Nevertheless, Safonov performed slightly better than Neuer. Not only because he missed one less goal, but also because he was more reliable in other situations.

The Russian goalkeeper made two saves, while Neuer scored none. In addition, Safonov successfully played on the exits with his fists three times and intercepted the overhangs the same number of times — the German goalkeeper has zeros in these indicators.

When things are not going well with the defense, attacking power comes to the fore. And PSG clearly has the advantage here. In the first match, the trio of Désiré Douai – Ousmane Dembele – Hvicha Kvaratskhelia participated in absolutely all the goals of the Parisians. Hvicha scored a double, Dembele scored a double+ an assist, and Douay had two assists — just for Hvich and Dembele.

And what about Bayern? The Germans also have a decent three, but in the first match against PSG it turned out to be slightly less effective: Harry Kane scored a penalty and an assist, while Luis Diaz and Michael Olise each scored a goal.

One way or another, the home field factor can still help Bayern make a comeback. However, PSG obviously won't give up the advantage so easily. And, in particular, Safonov will try to please the Parisian fans again with his reliable goalkeeping.

Close the Trapdoor: will Safonov help PSG get to the Champions League final

The Russian goalkeeper faces the key matches of the season against Bayern Munich

Safonov may go down in history

The fact that Matvey Safonov became the main goalkeeper during the season is no surprise to anyone. He took his chance, gained the trust of head coach Luis Enrique and deservedly put his Frenchman Luc Chevalier, who was bought from Lille in the summer of 2025 for €40 million, on the bench.

The turning point in Safonov's career at PSG was the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final against Brazilian Flamengo, where Matvey deflected four shots in a row in a penalty shootout.

After that, only injuries could prevent the Russian from entering the field in an important PSG match. Compared to last season, when Matvey was a rare substitute for Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma, this year he has made significant progress in playing time in the Champions League.

If in the 2024/25 season Safonov played only two matches in the tournament, conceding one goal and playing zero once, then in the current draw he has already played nine games, 11 goals conceded and four dry matches.

Statistics confirm that PSG's success in the current draw is largely due to the performance of the Russian goalkeeper. In particular, his confident actions helped the team beat Liverpool in the quarter-finals.

Obviously, if PSG reach the final, Safonov will play there. He is now rightfully taking his place at the gates of the French grandee. And if PSG wins the main European football cup, Matvey will set several achievements for Russian football players at once.

Firstly, he will win the sixth "Russian" Champions League trophy, after Igor Dobrovolsky (Marseille, France, 1993), Vladimir Bout (Borussia Dortmund, Germany, 1997), Dmitry Alenichev (Porto, Portugal, 2004), Denis Cheryshev (Real Madrid, Spain, 2016) and himself a year ago.

Secondly, he will become the first Russian football player in 22 years to reach the Champions League final in the main squad. Dmitry Alenichev was the last to achieve this — he played in the decisive match of the 2003/04 season for Porto against Monaco and even scored. Since then, not a single Russian has reached the finals at the base, and some did not even qualify for the decisive match.

Safonov, on the other hand, can reach the Champions League final for the second year in a row; he will become the first Russian football player to win two Champions League cups.