Ousmane Dembele proved the difference for Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final at Arsenal.
The 27-year-old scored the only goal of the game — in just the fourth minute — to give PSG a 1-0 advantage ahead of next Wednesday’s return match in the French capital.
Dembele has been his club’s main dangerman this year; he has been directly involved in 30 goals in 2025 — more than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues.
Gunners fans would have been relieved therefore to see the France forward limp off in the 70th minute with the tie in the balance.
And, with only eight days until the deciding leg at the Parc des Princes, all eyes will be on Dembele to assess the severity of the injury.
The player himself provided an update as he headed out of the Emirates towards the team bus.
PSG’s Ousmane Dembele was taken off in the 70th minute after picking up a hamstring injury
The France forward fired his side ahead in just the fourth minute — the only goal of the tie
Dembele has now scored a remarkable 33 goals in just 45 appearances across all competitions
He told French outlet L’Equipe: ‘I felt a little something, but it’s okay.’
His manager, Luis Enrique, expanded during his post-match press conference and admitted there were concerns about his star player’s chances of making next week’s fixture.
‘He’ll undergo tests tomorrow,’ said the Spaniard.
‘It’s not serious, it’s something very minor, but he’s probably a doubt for the second leg.
‘We’re going to try to get Dembele back on the pitch but we’re a real team. If Ousmane can play, that’s better. But if he doesn’t, we’ll still be a real team. We’ve been saying that since the start of the season.’
Declan Rice’s Arsenal side must win in Paris next week to reach the Champions League final
On his side’s performance in the first leg, Enrique said: ‘There was an incredible atmosphere inside the stadium, it was deafening, but we got off to a wonderful start and the early goal gave us a boost of confidence.
‘It is mission accomplished for this evening. But our objective is to win the second leg at home. With Arsenal we cannot let our guard down or be complacent because they can score quickly and we are back to square one.
‘Nothing is in the bag. We need to win when we are at home because Arsenal now have nothing to lose.’
