For the successive season, Liverpool went against the European champions at Anfield, only to find the mountain left by the first leg in Paris too steep to climb. Despite a much-improved collective effort, Ousmane Dembele's clinical brace ensured there would be no legendary European comeback for the current Premier League champions, as Paris Saint-Germain secured a 2-0 victory on Tuesday night (4-0 on aggregate) to march into the Champions League semi-finals.
Slot benched Salah again
The evening started with a moment of silence to honour the 97 fans lost at Hillsborough on the eve of that disastrous event's 37th anniversary. Liverpool manager Arne Slot used that platform to call for the long-promised Hillsborough law, urging the government to honour the families of those lost in their long fight for justice.
Unlike Paris, Slot, who had Alexander Isak available from the start, and he was paired with Hugo Ekitiké and Florian Wirtz, as Mohamed Salah started on the bench again. Meantime Louis Enruique kept his side unchanged while eyeing their third consecutive Champions League semi-final qualification.
Slot's tactical shift initially worked as Liverpool pressed high and forced uncharacteristic errors from PSG midfield in the first half. Alexander Isak registered the Reds' first shot on target of the entire fixture with an early header, while Milos Kerkez and Dominik Szoboszlai controlled the game from the wings.
Ekitiké was stretched out in the first half
However, the momentum began to change as Hugo Ekitiké was stretched off in agony after his ankle injury on the half-hour mark. The injury forced an early arrival of Mohamed Salah, who was treated by a rapturous end field reception by the fans.
The Egyptian nearly made an immediate impact, crossing from Ibrahim Akonate, whose header led to a close-range chance for Kerkez, but Safónov's outstanding save kept the first leg's scoreline unchanged.
Liverpool started the second half well, with Ryan Gravenberch surging runs from deep and controlling the midfield, while Cody Gakpo, who came off the bench to replace Isak, forced a save from Safónov from distance.
Liverpool's penalty was overturned
The big moment of the match came when referee Maurizio Mariani awarded Liverpool a penalty for a foul by Willian Pacho on Alexis Mac Allister. Although after a VAR intervention and a trip to the pitch-side monitor, the referee overturned his decision, which drained the hope out of the home crowd.
Read also: Most valuable Premier League teams to be relegated.
Dembele broke the deadlock
As Liverpool looked more desperate for goals and could push their bodies forward, they became more vulnerable to the counter-attack. In the 72nd minute, the PSG took advantage of that as substitute Bradley Barcola broke down the left and found Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who shifted the ball to Dembele.
The French striker, who had a rusty first leg and missed a sitter in the first half, made no mistake this time, cutting inside Mac Allister and sweeping a 20-yard strike into the bottom corner for the first goal of the night. Dembele scored his second in the stoppage time, once again assisted by Barcola, to demolish Liverpool's European dream at Anfield.
PSG will now face either Real Madrid or Bayern in the semi-finals, and for Liverpool, with the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League titles out of reach this season, they will have to finish the season empty-handed.