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By HARRY BAMFORTH and CRAIG HOPE AT THE ALLIANZ ARENA Published: 02: 05 AEST, 1 June 2025 | Updated: 05: 59 AEST, 1 June 2025 148 View comments Follow Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as PSG and Inter Milan go heat-to-head in the 2024-25 Champions League final in the Allianz Arena, Germany. I was going to post Achraf Hakimi's opener, but then I thought about how Desire Doue has been balling out, so I opted for his goal instead. Look, is it the best? Nope. Is it still one hell of a moment? Oh yeah. Doue deserved a goal for his first-half performance, and it may just have won the final for PSG. Enjoy! Tum Balogun at the Allianz Arena: How is it only two? Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has two chances to kill the final on the stroke of half-time, with the second a simply must-score one. But his header flies just over the bar, and the curtain is then brought down on a fabulous half for PSG. They have one hand on the trophy they have always craved. Man. .. Desire Doue is a joke of a player. This is a Champions League final, but the 19-year-old is treating it like a kickabout at the park with his mates. He drifts into the middle of the park, produces a quite daft bit of skill to beat his man, and then tries to drill the ball into the bottom corner, but it goes wide. Golly gosh, though. .. what a player. Ohhhh. .. that was the game right there! Ousmane Dembele has the chance to kill this final stone dead before half-time, but Yann Sommer comes to the rescue for Inter. Desire Doue whips in a joke of a cross after a lovely bit of skill, and Dembele meets it at the back post about two yards from goal. You expect the net to bulge and the party to start, but Sommer somehow denies him. Huge moment. Look, I know as a journalist I am not meant to pick sides, but this final could really do with an Inter goal. So, I have just put on my Inter colours and am cheering for the Italians now. Joking, joking. .. I swear I am impartial. But honestly, the next goal is so important. PSG get it, and this game is done. Inter do, and we have a final again. This is much better from Inter. They have finally woken up, we might actually have a final on our hands. I mean, it's about time. Nicolo Barella ruins a great attack, mind. Just as it's looking promising and they have the ball in the PSG box, Barella takes a loose touch and gives it away. What has happened to the little fella? Having a shocker. Oh, Marcus, Marcus, Marcus. .. How Thuram has not just pulled a goal back, I don't know. His hands are on his head, he can't believe it, and neither can I. The ball is plonked to the back stick, Thuram drifts in, beats his man to the header, and you just expect him to head home. But he powers the ball wide. Got to do better there. That just sums up this Inter display. Marcus Thuram finally has a bit of space to run into, but rather than go at PSG, he decides to turn around and pass backward. Oh, maybe that was the right move. Inter work the ball well and eventually a cross is whipped toward the striker, but Pacho puts the ball behind for a corner. Wow, Federico Dimarco has actually done something well. That sounds harsh, but he has been stinking out the gaff with his defending in this final. PSG are targeting him, and Ousmane Dembele drives toward the full-back before trying to bend one top corner. Dimarco manages to get the block in. He needed that to go his way. What has happened to Inter? Where is the team that we saw ship seven goals past Barcelona? Well, it certainly ain't here. PSG are playing them off the park, this is the most dominant final display I have seen since AC Milan's first half against Liverpool 20 years ago. We all know what happened then, mind. Same again? A lot of people are debating whether the ball went out of play in the build-up to PSG's second. Nicolo Barella was trying to shepherd the ball out for a corner, but Nuno Mendes nicked it from him, and the rest is as they say history. Honestly, it looked close to going out, but I am not sure whether it did. Oh my word, Inter have actually attacked. .. I can't believe it. It's taken conceding two goals, but the Italian side have finally had a shot. It comes from the head of Francesco Acerbi following a corner, and lands straight in the arms of Gigi Donnarumma. Inter really need to wake up, or this is over. DESIRE DOUE ON THE BIGGEST STAGE OF ALL! Forget Lamine Yamal, Doue is staking his claim for the Ballon d'Or now, and does so in some style. OK, I'm getting carried away, but the youngster comes up trumps in the Champions League final. Federico Dimarco has another stinker as Doue fires a volley toward goal from the right-hand side of the box, and it deflects off his foot and goes in. PSG are running away with this - can Inter even come back? Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is going to score today, I can just feel it. The lad is having an absolute field day down that left flank - he is playing with a smile on his face. The tricky winger does his classic by cutting inside and trying to arc a stunner into the top corner. All goes well until the bit that matters. .. the ball goes miles wide. Inter just can't get hold of the ball. This is a Champions League final, guys, you can't just go the whole game without doing anything. It's almost like they have forgotten how to play football. Bizarre. FIRST BLOOD GOES TO THE FRENCH CHAMPIONS! If you thought the noise from the PSG fans was loud before, they have nearly just taken the roof off at the Allianz Arena. You felt a PSG goal was coming with how they have started, and its Achraf Hakimi who delivers it. Vitinha finds Desire Doue, and the youngster shows marvellous composure to square the ball for Hakimi to slide home from close range. I have no idea what Federico Dimarco was doing, though. He is so deep and keeps everybody onside. So poor. We have had our first shot of the night. No surprise that it comes from a player in a PSG shirt, they have had pretty much all of the ball. Desire Doue is the man - well, boy - who has a pop, pulling the trigger from miles out. The ball just bobbles into the gloves of Yann Sommer. The PSG fans, wow. I know I sound like a broken record but its crazy just how much noise their end is generating. I feel like I am in the Parc des Princes and not a neutral stadium. Meanwhile, their team on the pitch has started the better and Ousmane Dembele very nearly gets on the end of Vitinha's cross. PSG's press is just silly, so silly. They are just relentless, and Ousmane Dembele is leading from the front. Inter are already in a panic when they get the ball. Ousmane Dembele hunts down Yann Sommer and manages to force him into a terrible goal kick out of play. Brilliant work from the Frenchman. I didn't realise Borussia Dortmund made it to back-to-back finals? Honestly, Inter Milan's kit is so yellow that you'd be forgiven for mistaking them for the German outfit. It's actually Inter's third kit, which is the first time a team has worn one in a Champions League final for 26 years. Who were the last to do so? Manchester United in the 1999 final. A good omen, that. We all know what happened. The stage is set. The ball gets rolling with the background of PSG's crazy fans belting out chants. A sign of what's to come. Will they be cheering by the full-time whistle? Tum Balogun at the Allianz Arena: That's better! The music is now off, and now the atmosphere is going back to what it was. In fact, the fans are taking it up another notch, if anything. It's very loud again. The two Javiers - Pastore and Zanetti - then bring out the beautiful Big Ears as the two teams wait to emerge from the tunnel. Pastore looks buzzing, while Zanetti look's like he is pooping bricks. They have now left the turf, motivational music comes on, and the players start making their way into and then out of the tunnel. Their heads must be a mess. The nerves are swirling. And then, the anthem. Oh, what an anthem. A thing of beauty. The music blares out, the players are on the pitch, and it's nearly go-time in Munich. What a night this is going to be. I'm not sure about this one, chief. You guys know I love a good moan, so be prepared for another one. Why are we ruining the pre-match atmosphere with a Linkin Park concert? It makes no sense. This is nothing against the iconic rock band; they are brilliant, but their presence has just ruined the back and forth between the PSG and Inter fans, which was top class. This isn't the Super Bowl; we don't need this, UEFA. And breathe. What I will say is that I love the music that Linkin Park play - can't hate a bit of rock. He says after slating their very presence. Guys, we are almost there. Both teams have just finished their warm-ups, and there is a massive roar as the players clap toward both sets of fans before going back into the dressing room. I wonder what is going through their heads right now. If it were me, I would be bricking it. While they get nervous, though, we are all about to be entertained by Linkin Park, the rock band. They are just coming out for the pre-match show. James Horncastle, Italian football expert, on BBC Radio 5 Live: This is your 20-minute warning (imagine you heard this through the megaphone in this photo). Well, it's actually 19 minutes, but hey ho. I, for one, am itching for this game to get going. The atmosphere in the Alliaz is getting me so excited. I can just feel that this game is going to be a belter. Finals are normally cagey, but this one won't be. Luis Enrique, PSG boss, speaking about his daughter Xana: You can't help but admire Luis Enrique. No, not just because of his achievements as a coach, but just how incredible of a person he is. The Spaniard has been touched by tragedy in recent years. In 2019, Enrique lost his daughter Xana, who was just nine years of age. It's something that every parent dreads and hopes to never have to deal with, losing a child, but it's Enrique's reality. However, the way he has dealt with such a loss has been inspiring. Six years on, he still speaks about the shining light that she was. 'Her body is gone, but she hasn't died. She's still with us, ' he said. In the 2015 Champions League final, when Enrique guided Barcelona to the trophy, his daughter planted a huge Barcelona flag into the ground. So, on a day like this, Xana will very much be on his mind. I didn't know Newcastle were in the Champions League final? Aren't they supposed to be the only fan base that takes their tops off? Not to be mean, but they don't usually look as trim as this Parisian fella, he's in great shape - no wonder he wants to show it off. Tum is right, the atmosphere inside the Allianz is just daft (in a good way). I can barely hear myself think well enough to type this, which is probably why I started typing about fans without tops on. Tum Balogun at the Allianz Arena: Craig is right when it comes to comparing the styles of PSG and Inter Milan; they are more similar than most think. However, they are also very different. Inter are a team who have grown and grown over the years - they have been together for a while. Meanwhile, PSG are a team full of youthful exuberance that has just found its feet this year. The average age of PSG's starting lineup this evening (25y 96d) is five years & 146 days younger than Internazionale's (30y 242d), the biggest ever age gap between two starting XIs in a UEFA Champions League final. Crazy, am I right? Mail Sport's Tennis Reporter Matthew Lambwell in Paris: Tonight is absolutely massive for Desire Doue. This is a lad who has blown away everybody's already high expectations this season with just how brilliant he has been. Doue has been on absolute smoke. If he were a house, I would worry about him burning down. The fire brigade would most certainly need to be called. OK, that wasn't one of my best. .. but you get the gist. The 19-year-old winger has been lighting up the sport, and if it wasn't for Lamine Yamal, he would be the best teenager in the business. It's not really a surprise that Luis Enrique has put his trust in the young lad, but still, Doue will need to realise just how big the magnitude of this match is. Can he deal with the pressure? This is no ordinary night. Is this the team that will finally bring the Champions League back to Paris? The big news is that teenager Desire Doue starts for the Parisians. Bar that, there are no surprises here. I didn't expect anybody else to be in this PSG side. It's such a strong team. PSG starting line-up: Donnarumma, Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes; Ruiz, Neves, Vitinha; Dembele, Doue, Kvaratskhelia. Right, you have waited long enough. The starting line-ups for the Champions League final are now here, so let me show you Inter's. Simone Inzaghi has had a fully fit squad to choose from, which is a real rarity in football these days. And well, these are the 11 players he has trusted with doing the job over in Munich. Lautaro Martinez, of course, is the standout. Guys, I have a crazy statistic. I mean, really crazy. Given PSG and Inter Milan have both been involved in the Champions League for at least the last decade, you'd have thought they'd have met before in the competition. Well, they haven't. This is the first ever competitive meeting between PSG and Inter, and is only the second European Cup/Champions League final between a French and Italian side. What an occasion to meet for the very first time. It doesn't get any bigger than this. I reckon this could be a classic. Wow, just wow. Right on cue, after I typed the last post, the Inter Milan fans who are already packed inside the Allianz Arena show us what they are all about. The Inter players have just arrived and walk out onto the pitch to take in the whole occasion. As soon as they come out, the roar from the Inter fans is deafening. Honestly, my ears are still ringing. There is still way over an hour until kick-off, too! I expected to be writing a lot about the PSG fans today, considering their reputation of being able to make one hell of a racket. I'm not sure why, but I wasn't sure how good the Inter ones would be. I have only covered them live once in my life, back in 2022 against Liverpool, and I wasn't overly impressed. But going by what Craig is saying, they are well up for this one. I mean, there was just no way they wouldn't be - this is the biggest club match in the season. PSG fans, you are going to like this. I write that like there are a bunch of Parisians reading this blog, which is unlikely. You never know, though. Why will they like what I am about to say? Well, tonight's meeting between PSG and Inter will be the fifth European Cup/UEFA Champions League final to be held in Munich. The victors in each of the previous four were winning the trophy for the very first time, a run PSG will seek to continue. Many of you will remember the final here in 2012, when Chelsea and Roberto Di Matteo did the unthinkable. What a day that was. Can PSG do the same? Well, this isn't scary at all. .. PSG have some of the most intimidating fans in the world, but they are also just brilliant. These pictures are actually from a fanzone outside of the Parc des Princes in Paris - these fans aren't even in Munich. Still, they are incredibly passionate and, by the looks of it, angry too. Football fans can be a weird bunch, can't they? I bet the atmosphere there is incredible, mind. Emmanuel Petit, former Arsenal midfielder, speaking to Samba Slots: Jeez, this is mental. Shops in Paris have been boarded up ahead of the Champions League final tonight. That is how worried the city are about riots, whether PSG win or lose over in Munich. Scary. Oh yeah, this is what it's all about. The other day, I said that the Europa League trophy was prettier than the Champions League trophy. .. I mean, what was I thinking? My mind has changed, just look at O' Big Ears in all its glory. An absolutely stunning bit of silverware. So shiny, too. I mean, Inter have had a cracking journey to the final. Their semi-final against Barcelona may just be the best tie I have ever seen in the competition. That's saying something, as there have been many a special tie in the history of the European Cup. That was just one part of their route to Munich, though, so let's have a look at the rest of their knockout stage wins: Round of 16: Quarter-Final Semi-Final Luis Enrique, PSG boss, speaking ahead of the match: PSG have had one hell of a tournament. I don't care what anybody else says to me; they have been the best team in Europe during the knockout stages. They made the Premier League look like a farmer's league by knocking out three English sides en route to Munich. They were superb. Shall we take a look back at how they got here? Of course. Round of 16: Quarter-Final Semi-Final I feel like I have de ja vu. .. Two years ago, when Inter Milan were set to face Manchester City in the Champions League final, everybody just assumed that Pep Guardiola's side would steamroll them on their way to the trophy. And well, that certainly didn't happen. Inter played brilliantly that day, and many believe they were unlucky not to at least take the final to extra-time, only losing 1-0. This time around, you'd expect people to give them more of a chance - they have proved themselves on the biggest of stages - but that is not the case at all. Everybody is waxing lyrical about PSG and expects this to be their year, but honestly, you'd be a fool to count Inter out. Remember, they knocked out a reborn Barcelona side. After seeing the last video, you'd think many people would want to stay away from Munich, right? Well, that's obviously not going to be the case when the Champions League final comes to town. The good outweighs the bad. New research from the Mastercard Economics Institute has found that sporting events are seeing a surge in demand, with 58 per cent of Europeans planning to attend at least one this year, a 152 per cent increase compared to 2024. As the UEFA Champions League final arrives in Munich this weekend, the German capital is set to receive a huge spending boost across hospitality and local businesses. Spending in restaurants and bars near to Wembley at last year’s final in London rose by 7. 4 per cent, whilst the economic impact of the Euro 2024 finals in Berlin was even greater, and saw a 130 per cent increase in spend within 3km from the stadium. Spending remained 4. 6 times higher within a 10km radius, highlighting the power of cross-border spending from fans. It's going to be hella stressful for those in hospitality this weekend, but boy will it be worth it. Well, for the owners of establishments, at least. .. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. .. And there are some people out there who think it's only England who have some idiotic football fans. Here is a case and point as to why that's not true. Football fans just can't help themselves, can they? I don't get why fighting is such a big thing. What do they gain out of it? Sour scenes. Mail Sport's Matthew Lambwell in Paris: Simone Inzaghi, Inter boss, speaking ahead of the final: PSG may be favourites, but Inter are no underdogs. I have heard many football fans say they are gutted that Simone Inzaghi's side got past Barcelona because they wanted to see the Spanish side in the final. For whatever reason, there is this consensus among regular footie lovers that Inter are boring. They were as much a part of the best semi-final of all time as Barcelona. They aren't just all defence. Inter are worthy of their spot in this final; they have been one of the best sides in Europe all year. Now, after the pain of Istanbul in 2023, Inzaghi and his side will be desperate to end the night on the winning side. They know what it's like to play in this blockbuster bout, so things should be different this time. Can they make their dream happen? One. More. Step. After years and years of endless pain in the Champions League, PSG are just one game away from getting their hands on the trophy they have craved for over a decade. It's been one hell of a journey. Not just this season, but in the last five years since they last made a final. PSG are a completely different team these days. Gone are the days when they were a team stacked with superstars that had little cohesion. These days, Luis Enrique has a well-oiled pressing machine that fights together as one. They have been the best team in the competition by far this season, which is mental considering they nearly didn't even make the play-offs at one stage. The Parisians are certainly the favourites, but they know all too well that the label means nothing when it comes to a final. They just need to deliver today. It feels like this might just be their time to win the European Cup for the very first time in the club's history. Only Inter Milan's black and blue brick wall stands in their way. The atmosphere in the city of Munich may be bouncing, but inside the Allianz Arena it remains calm. Barely a single soul in sight. I find this part in the evening quite serene. You have to enjoy the calmness before it all gets bonkers. And boy, it's going to get hella bonkers up in here. It's going to be something else, just you wait and see. The atmosphere is already building. It's been an absolutely magnificent day in Munich, I mean, just look at it - barely a cloud in the sky. All I see is blue. The perfect weather for the build-up to the Champions League final, no wonder the fans all look buzzing to be there. I hope they brought their sun cream, mind. As you can see, the flares are already out, and supporters of both sides are enjoying every moment they can before the nerves kick in tonight. Seeing these pictures makes me want to get involved! 'It's time to begin, isn't it? ' That's a line in an Imagine Dragons song called 'It's Time', and for some reason, I thought it was a good way to open this blog. Don't ask me why, I was just trying to be clever. After nine months, 188 matches, a ridiculous amount of goals, raw emotion - good and bad - we have finally made it to the Champions League showpiece. In roughly five hours' time, one team will be lifting good Ol' Big Ears aloft into the Munich sky, and the 2025 European champions will be crowned. But who will it be: PSG or Inter Milan? Inter were in this very position two years ago in Istanbul, but as all English football fans will know, things didn't quite go to plan. Sorry, Manchester United fans, for reminding you of another painful moment in your recent history. PSG have also been here before, five years ago, but on this fateful day, they are still chasing their first Champions League crown. I, for one, have been excited for this game ever since the semi-finals. I have been itching to watch these two giants of the game go head-to-head, and now it's finally here. Get that music playing. .. Women asking women to talk about top level men's f. ..

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