Ousmane Dembele helped PSG knock out his former club Barcelona (Picture: Getty)
Ousmane Dembele insists being booed and jeered during PSG’s Champions League victory over Barcelona will not change his ‘love’ for the Spanish club.
Dembele, who left Barca last summer, helped PSG overturn a one-goal deficit and progress to the semi-finals of the Champions League at the expense of his former side.
Barcelona took a slender lead from the first leg in Paris and looked in control of the tie when Raphinha scored an early opener on Tuesday night.
But the hosts were reduced to ten men shortly after – Ronald Araujo shown a straight red card for bringing down Bradley Barcola – and Dembele, who was booed throughout the game, scored shortly before half-time to give PSG hope.
The French side’s momentum continued after the break and Vitinha and Kylian Mbappe scored two quick goals to put PSG ahead in the tie.
Ten-man Barcelona tried to find a way back into the quarter-final and came close through Ilkay Gundogan, who struck the outside of the post with a crisp strike, but Barca’s race was run when Mbappe added a fourth late on.
‘Everyone believed [we could qualify], even if we lost the first leg 3-2,’ Dembele told Canal+ after Paris Saint-Germain advanced to the semi-finals.
PSG stunned Barcelona to advance in the Champions League (Picture: Getty)
‘We didn’t give up, we knew we were going to score goals here. A big shift from the whole team. We worked the entire week, tactically, with the coach.
‘His tactics were perfect. Even though we conceded the first goal, we didn’t let our heads drop. We continued to believe.’
Asked about the reception he received from the Barcelona fans, Dembele added: ‘The welcome given to me? I experienced it very well because I already experienced it in 2021 of being whistled here in Barcelona.
‘I am not going to change my game for whistles. I stayed focused. I gave it my all. Barca is a great club. I love Barcelona… and I understand the whistles. That’s life.’
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Paris Saint-Germain, yet to win the Champions League, will face Borussia Dortmund in the semi-finals after the German side knocked out Atletico Madrid in another thrilling tie.
Looking ahead to the semis, Dembele said: ‘It’s a big thing. The last time we were in the semis, we got to the final, and we’re crossing our fingers that we can do the same this year and get to Wembley.
‘We’ll have to recover in time for Lyon at the weekend, then we’ll look ahead to the semi-final.’
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