A phenomenal Paris Saint-Germain outfit finally achieved their Champions League dream as they slaughtered a pitiful Inter Milan 5-0 in Sunday's final at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
Only one team turned up in the first half, and that was the boys in blue, as Achraf Hakimi and the breathtaking Desire Doue launched Les Parisiens into a richly deserved 2-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes.
Simone Inzaghi's meek men were being outwitted, outfought and outplayed in the opening 45 minutes, and the PSG pressing machine did not let up in the second 45, where 19-year-old delight Doue bagged his second and the French giants' third to write a new page of history.a
No player had ever directly contributed to three goals in one Champions League final before Doue lit up the Allianz Arena, but PSG were not done there, as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia wanted a slice of the goalscoring action and got it.
Not content to declare at four, PSG opened up the muddled Inter backline one last time, as Doue's fellow 19-year-old Senny Mayulu capped off a five-star display - the biggest final win in the history of the European Cup - before the long-awaited celebrations commenced.
SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT
© Imago
Who needs Lionel Messi? Who needs Kylian Mbappe? Who needs Neymar? When PSG's superstars failed to inspire the club to Champions League glory, a collection of humble youngsters conquered the continent in astonishing fashion.
So often a team renowned for harbouring individual talents as opposed to gelling a cohesive unit, the perpetual Ligue 1 champions have been a team transformed under Enrique, whose appointment was nothing short of a masterstroke from the hierarchy.
So easy on the eye, so hard-working and so ruthless when the chances come their way, Les Parisiens' young guns were not fazed by the magnitude of the occasion whatsoever, and they will deservedly claim their throne as kings of Europe.
On the other side of the coin, Inter may not have ever produced a more pitiful performance under Inzaghi's tenure, as the team renowned for hardly ever falling behind in the Champions League were ripped to total shreds in Munich.
If Inzaghi is indeed set to leave for the riches of Al-Hilal, his domestic successes will be largely forgotten about. Instead, all that should be remembered is his two Champions League final losses in the space of three seasons, and Saturday's result was nothing short of shambolic for everyone associated with Inter Milan.
PSG VS. INTER HIGHLIGHTS
Achraf Hakimi goal vs. Inter (12th min, PSG 1-0 Inter)
Quarter-final goal ✅
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
Semi-final goal ✅
Final goal ✅
Achraf Hakimi gives PSG an early lead in the Champions League final, but refuses to celebrate against his former side Inter ⚽
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/6nNcCd1dv0
The Italians cannot say it was not coming!
PSG's early dominance is rewarded, as Vitinha plays a crisp pass beyond the Inter backline into Doue, who squares for Hakimi - being played onside by Federico Dimarco - to tap home against his old team.
The Moroccan's respect for Inter trumps his delight at opening the scoring in a Champions League final as he refuses to celebrate, but the PSG contingent in the crowd certainly are!
Desire Doue goal vs. Inter (20th min, PSG 2-0 Inter)
19-year-old Desire Doue doubles the lead for PSG 🔥
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
The French side take a 2-0 lead in the Champions League final in less than 20 minutes! 😱
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/WEFeoBuqnk
Enrique's electric front three strikes again to devastating effect!
Inter's Nicolo Barella tries to win a corner, but Willian Pacho incredibly hooks his leg across the midfielder to keep the ball in play, and PSG are away on the counter through Kvaratskhelia.
The Georgian feeds Ousmane Dembele, who cuts inside and curls a pass over to Doue on the right, and the young Frenchman's half-volley deflects off the unfortunate Dimarco and flies past a helpless Yann Sommer.
Desire Doue goal vs. Inter (63rd min, PSG 3-0 Inter)
It's Desire Doue's world and we're just living in it 🌟
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
The 19-year-old makes it two goals and an assist in the Champions League final 🔥
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/t5J0AQaMWf
The Paris party can well and truly begin.
PSG have been breaking out the flicks and tricks all night long, and Dembele is the latest to do so, gracefully rolling the ball into the path of a charging Vitinha.
The Portugal international plays an inch-perfect pass into the feet of Doue, who takes it first time and coolly picks out the bottom corner to surely put Enrique's men out of sight.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia goal vs. Inter (73rd min, PSG 4-0 Inter)
The icing on the cake 🧁
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia sets the celebrations underway as he makes it 4-0 to PSG 🇫🇷
📺 @tntsports&@discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/igH0IIZpTz
Does anyone have that 'Stop! Stop! He's already dead!' Simpsons GIF? This is an absolute annihilation.
One slick through ball from Dembele splits the disjointed Inter backline wide open and sets Kvaratskhelia away, and the Georgian calmly finishes at Inzaghi's near post to spark more PSG pandemonium.
Senny Mayulu goal vs. Inter (87th min, PSG 5-0 Inter)
Look at the reaction from Senny Mayulu 😅
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
The homegrown PSG teen comes off the bench and bags a goal in the Champions League final... and you can see what it means to him and the squad 💙 pic.twitter.com/aiPOpyH3Qm
Could PSG's evening get any better? Yes, yes it could.
Two substitutes Bradley Barcola and Mayulu combine, and the latter fires in Les Parisiens' fifth at Sommer's near post, before wheeling away with a face of unbridled joy.
MAN OF THE MATCH - DESIRE DOUE
© Imago
Messi never did it. Cristiano Ronaldo never did it. But Doue did.
The 19-year-old created history as the first-ever player to directly contribute to three goals in one Champions League final, highlighting his extremely scary potential and maybe even earning the 'generational' badge in the process.
PSG VS. INTER MATCH STATS
Possession: PSG 59%-41% Inter
Shots: PSG 23-8 Inter
Shots on target: PSG 8-2 Inter
Corners: PSG 4-6 Inter
Fouls: PSG 13-7 Inter
BEST STATS
1+1 - Paris SG's Désiré Doué is the sixth different player to both score and assist in a UEFA Champions League final, while at 19 years and 362 days, he's the youngest to do so. Star. pic.twitter.com/6k8X0j3Fvj
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 31, 2025
2 - For the first time, a team have conceded two goals in the first 20 minutes of a UEFA Champions League final. Shock.#UCLfinal #UCL pic.twitter.com/qWUFnw79NG
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) May 31, 2025
3 - Désiré Doué is the first player to be involved in 3+ goals in the UEFA Champions League final. GoldenBoy. #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/Nvh5eijXM6
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) May 31, 2025
5 - Paris SG are the first side to win an European Cup/UEFA Champions League final by a 5+ goals margin. Manita. #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/cSpU3HynCQ
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) May 31, 2025
Luis Enrique becomes just the second manager in history to win a treble, including the UEFA Champions League, with two different clubs.
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 31, 2025
History is made 🤩 pic.twitter.com/TQc5ODr2BQ
WHAT NEXT?
A lifetime contract for Enrique perhaps?
Nobody will sleep in the French capital for a few days as the celebrations continue, but the preparations for a title defence in 2025-26 will soon get underway.
While Enrique will no doubt survive the PSG axe, Inzaghi may have just suffered his worst-ever humiliation in his final Inter match, and just how it went so wrong for the Nerazzurri cannot be explained.
Ben Knapton
