Paris, May 6 (IANS) Paris Saint Germain head coach Luis Enrique confirmed Ousmane Dembele will be a part of the side that faces Arsenal in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
Arsenal is currently trailing PSG by one goal after Dembele’s fourth minute strike from outside the box secured a 1-0 victory for the Ligue 1 winners in North London.
The French forward is Paris St-Germain’s top scorer this season with 33 goals in all competitions. Having gone off with a hamstring problem after scoring against Arsenal last week, he appeared to be moving well in the session on Tuesday morning.
“He’s been training with us for the last two days. You saw him on Tuesday – a normal training session for him. He’ll be available on Wednesday,” said Enrique in the pre-game conference.
PSG’s attacking wingback Achraf Hakimi called Dembele a genius on the ball and was delighted on his return.
“He is the type of player who makes you want to go to the stadium to watch because he is a genius on the ball, even if he doesn’t have many chances. He can change the course of the game so we are delighted to have him back in the team,” said Hakimi.
Arsenal and PSG are equally finely poised, with the French side holding a slender advantage. Dembele’s early strike in London has put Paris within touching distance of only their second-ever final.
Despite the lead, the French champions cannot afford to be complacent. Arsenal, known for their unpredictability and history of pulling off upsets in big games, could level the tie early and shift momentum.
Enrique further elaborated on what could prove to be key for his side in the clash.
“Which means knowing that we will suffer at some point of this game, because the opponents doesn’t have a favourable result. So it will be like in the first leg, a game balanced between both sides. I think we will need to put in a similar performance that in the first leg and most importantly stay true to our philosophy that led us to this point,” added the Spanish head coach.
–IANS
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