PARIS - Paris St Germain are on the brink of a maiden Champions League title, chasing European glory in their first campaign since the departure of France striker Kylian Mbappe, but street-wise Inter Milan stand between them and history in Saturday's final.
Luis Enrique's Ligue 1 champions, backed by owners Qatar Sports Investments, have been impressive in Europe with a cohesive brand of football that marks a clear departure from the star-driven, sometimes disjointed squads of PSG's recent past.
The focus on unity, tactical discipline and collective effort has drawn widespread plaudits ahead of their showdown with Inter, who eliminated Barcelona after a thrilling semi-final, in European club soccer's biggest match of the season.
"They (PSG) buy into their coach’s game plan, you can see it, and it shows in everyone’s activity," former PSG coach Luis Fernandez, who led the club to their only European title in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1996, told Reuters.
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"No-one’s playing the star, even though they’re all stars, and I admire that."
Since Qatar Sports Investments took control of the club in 2011, big-spending PSG have dominated domestic football but have fallen short in Europe, with their only previous Champions League final ending in defeat by Bayern Munich in 2020.
Fernandez believes this year’s squad represents a refreshing shift in approach.
“This is the best collective we’ve seen at PSG since the Qatari era began -- the one I like the most, and the one I keep praising,” he said.
Fernandez highlighted the camaraderie and mutual trust forged within the group after a decade dominated by marquee signings and high-profile exits.
"This team has the special quality of genuinely liking each other, appreciating one another — they're a group of friends," he said. "They position themselves intelligently, make the effort together and no-one resists what the coach asks of them."
Keepers' final
Luis Enrique, who took charge last year, said his team had long targeted this moment, which comes after they won the domestic double of Ligue 1 and the French Cup.
"We’ve been thinking about this final for a very long time because it’s the objective we all share -- and we want to make history with our supporters," the Spaniard said.
"We’ve been preparing for 11 months. There’s nothing special to adjust because the team is used to playing this way. It’s about managing the pressure and excitement of such a special moment."
Inter, battle-hardened and tactically astute under Simone Inzaghi, will likely test PSG's resolve, particularly at set pieces — one of the few areas where Fernandez sees vulnerability in the French champions.
"On set pieces, where PSG show a slight weakness, they’ll need to be very careful. In open play, PSG are certainly the better side,” he said.
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PSG enter the final with no injury concerns, while Inter fullback Benjamin Pavard and striker Lautaro Martinez are expected to be fit for the Serie A runners-up.
"My wish is to have everyone available on Saturday evening," Inzaghi said. "We're going to approach the final in the best possible way."
Inter won the Champions League in 2010, after also lifting the European Cup in 1964 and 1965, while Olympique de Marseille are the only French club to have won the trophy, back in 1993.
While this year's finalists have displayed attacking brilliance, the match could be decided by the goalkeepers - PSG's Gianluigi Donnarumma and Inter's Yann Sommer.
"If you look at the Champions League winners over the last 10 or 15 years, practically, it’s always the teams with strong goalkeepers who win," former Italy keeper Gianluigi Buffon told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
"And if we look at the season, Donnarumma and Sommer have been the top goalkeepers in Europe. Maybe Gigio (Donnarumma) was the absolute best, but Sommer showed an impressive consistency in maintaining his very high level of performance. It will also be a final of goalkeepers.
