Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele has called on his teammates to reflect on their performance after narrowly advancing to the UEFA Champions League semifinals, despite a 3–2 defeat to Aston Villa in the second leg at Villa Park.
The French side progressed 5–4 on aggregate, having established a 3–1 advantage in the first leg.
Dembele, who has roots in Mauritania and Senegal, expressed concern over the team’s complacency after taking a 2–0 lead within the first 30 minutes.
Villa responded with three goals, nearly overturning the tie.
Speaking to Canal+, Dembele stated, “You have to be demanding in these matches, we made it very difficult for ourselves in the second half when we let up.
“We thought we’d qualified, we thought we were too good to go out.
“At 2-1, we thought it was over, but that’s how the Champions League is.
“You can play against teams in front of their home crowd with a heated crowd that turns the match around, we’ll have to be more vigilant.”
PSG will face either Arsenal or Real Madrid in the semifinals, with the first leg scheduled for April 30.
