Christensen heads winner as Barcelona beats PSG 3-2

PARIS: With his team trailing 2-1 and Paris Saint-Germain pushing hard for another goal, Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez’s substitutions paid off immediately.

Midfielder Pedri set up the equalizer for Raphinha within a minute of coming on at Parc des Princes stadium.

Then, two minutes after his introduction, central defender Andreas Christensen headed home from a corner to give Barcelona a 3-2 win in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.

“Pedri came on and helped us a lot. I’m very proud of the team. Christensen also came on and helped,” Xavi said. “Tactically we did really well.”

Raphinha was the pick of Barcelona’s players on the night, and the Brazil forward had scored twice before Christensen’s 77th-minute goal.

The imposing Christensen headed Ilkay Gundogan’s corner from the left past Gianluigi Donnarumma from close range as the PSG goalkeeper stood rooted to his line instead of challenging for the ball.

After that goal, PSG coach Luis Enrique’s head dropped.

“We made things a bit difficult for ourselves. We managed to turn things around in the second half and could have had a third (goal),” Enrique said. “Everything’s still open for us and we will go there with ambition.”

Raphinha’s lively performance and finishing contrasted with a lackluster performance from Kylian Mbappe, who has scored a club record 251 goals for PSG but did not hit the target this time or make many of his trademark electric runs from deep.

Atletico edges Dortmund 2-1

Atletico Madrid moved closer to returning to the Champions League semifinals with a 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

Atletico took a first-half lead with goals by Rodrigo De Paul and Samuel Lino and outplayed Dortmund during most of the match, but the German team stayed alive thanks to a late goal by substitute Sebastien Haller.

Dortmund threatened in the end and twice hit the woodwork in the final minutes.

The second leg will be played next Tuesday in Germany.

Atletico hasn’t made it to the last four since 2017, when it lost to city rival Real Madrid. The Spanish club has won three of its last six quarterfinals.

Dortmund, the 1997 European champion, is looking to return to the semifinals for the first time since 2012-13, when it lost the final to fellow German club Bayern Munich. Atletico has won 29 of its last 32 home games across all tournaments. It was Simeone’s 50th Champions League win.

The result kept Atletico unbeaten in 18 knockout-round games at home in the Champions League — with its last defeat coming against Ajax in the quarterfinals in 1997. Dortmund has won only one of its last 11 away matches in the knockout stages of the Champions League.