The Champions League semi-finals are upon us, with just four teams still standing in the quest for continental supremacy.
England, France, Spain and Italy are represented in the last four this time around, by Arsenal, PSG, Barcelona and Inter respectively.
Here, we preview this week’s first legs with a good look at some of the key facts and stats…
Arsenal v PSG (Tuesday, 8pm BST)
Having impressively seen off reigning European champions Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, Arsenal must get past an impressive PSG side if they’re to reach their first Champions League final in 19 years – and only their second ever.
The Gunners beat PSG 2-0 in the league phase of this season’s competition and, despite winning 31 out of 43 games in all competitions since then, the recently crowned French champions have looked more fallible than formidable of late.
PSG saw their chances of completing an unbeaten Ligue 1 campaign disappear with a 3-1 home defeat to Nice last time out, having blown a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 away to Aston Villa in the second leg of their quarter-final 10 days earlier (they ultimately advanced 5-4 on aggregate).
However, PSG are still very much in contention to win the Champions League – the prize that has eluded them since their ascent to elite-club status in Europe. Arsenal, likewise, will know just how tantalisingly they are to tasting glory in this competition for the very first time, having lost late on to Barcelona in the final of 2006 – which took place in Paris, no less.
This will be the sixth meeting between the two clubs; the previous five encounters have produced two Arsenal victories and three draws.
Barcelona v Inter (Wednesday, 8pm BST)
Two clubs who’ve been crowned champions of Europe eight times between them – and a combined five times this century alone – face off in this season’s other semi-final, as Barcelona play Inter for the 13th time in Champions League history.
And it’s LaLiga leaders Barca who have bragging rights, having won six of the previous 12 games to Inter’s two. The only previous knockout clash, though, saw Inter triumph 3-2 on aggregate in the 2009/10 semi-finals, as they went on to do the treble.
The form book favours Barcelona, who beat Real Madrid to win the Copa del Rey at the weekend and have lost just one out of 28 matches in all competitions since Christmas, with their sole defeat a 3-1 loss at Borussia Dortmund in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final – after they had built a commanding 4-0 first-leg lead.
Inter, by contrast, have lost three on the spin since completing a 4-3 aggregate victory over Bayern Munich in the semis, going down 1-0 to Bologna and Roma in Serie A – and surrendering top spot in the process – and being dumped out of the Coppa Italia 3-0 by arch-rivals Milan, albeit with a significantly rotated side.
Nonetheless, this looks like an intriguing tie on paper: it pits the Champions League’s best attack (Barcelona average 3.1 goals per game) against the Champions League’s best defence (Inter average 0.4 goals per game conceded).
