There are just four teams left standing in the UEFA Champions League, each of them returning to play this week with a blank slate – and a berth in the final at Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary on May 30 within touching distance.
The two semifinal ties offer a unique tactical snapshot at the teams vying for Europe's top club prize. Two high-intensity sides in Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich will meet at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday with the hopes of inching closer to the final, each boasting a collection of top-tier attacking talent who are likely to have a say in which way this series goes. It also serves as a rematch of Bayern's trip to Paris on Matchday 4, the visitors coming out on top with a 2-1 win that first signaled their ability to make a deep run in the Champions League.
Arsenal, meanwhile, will travel to the Metropolitano Stadium on Wednesday to face Atletico Madrid in a match that could offer equal levels of intrigue but in a different style. The Gunners boast an impressive defensive stability while Atleti have that modality but have been bailed out by talented attackers like Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann time and time again. It is in stark contrast to Arsenal, who have a deep bench but have struggled to score outside of set pieces in recent weeks.
Here's what you need to know as Europe prepares for a pivotal week.
Paramount+ will once again serve as a one-stop shop for all things Champions League, while additional coverage can be seen across CBS, CBS Sports Network, CBS Sports Golazo Network and YouTube. Each day's coverage will begin on CBS and Paramount+, which will both air the UEFA Champions League Today pre-match show as well as both semifinal first-leg matches. The UEFA Champions League Today post-match show will air on both Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network, white new editions of The Champions Club (also on YouTube) and Scoreline will be live on CBS Sports Golazo Network to close out the action.
The #UCL semifinals are set 🌟 pic.twitter.com/KpVqC9QRhH
"These are the two best teams in Europe": Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique painted the picture perfectly ahead of Tuesday's clash against Bayern Munich, a match that offers plenty of intrigue with a trip to the final within reach. "These are the two best teams in Europe, even if Arsenal have also had a great season," he said. "In terms of consistency, maybe Bayern are a little bit above us but we have shown that no team is better than us."
Bayern's trip to Paris, nearly six months after they beat PSG at the Parc des Princes, feels poised to be one of the most entertaining Champions League matches of the season. The foes boast plenty of similarities – a dynamic style of play led by world-class attackers, all while each side seems to be hitting their stride at just the right time. It is anyone's guess who stops the other, each side with a compelling argument to advance. The battle will likely come down to those top-tier attackers, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia leading the way for PSG while Harry Kane and Michael Olise do the same for Bayern in performances that might just be the foundation of a Ballon d'Or conversation down the road. The best defensive team, though, might be the one that comes out on top.
"If the teams attack very well, you have to know how to defend, so that will be key," Enrique said. "We need to make the most of our attacks as best we can and we need to be clear on how to defend against this sort of team."
Neither side has particularly covered themselves in glory in that regard – Bayern have conceded 14 goals in the Champions League, slightly overperforming their tally of 16.54 expected goals against, while PSG have let in 17 goals from 17.37 expected goals against. Things may still tip in PSG's favor in that regard, though. They have not conceded in three straight Champions League games despite being matched up against the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool, while Bayern Munich's back-and-forth in a 6-4 aggregate win against Real Madrid in the quarterfinals raises some questions about their defensive resolve.
Are Arsenal okay?: Arsenal have been the team to beat this season in the Champions League but in the span of a few short months, Bayern have snatched that label from them and not only because of their dynamic play. The Gunners have been in freefall for a month, picking up just two narrow wins in a stretch of seven games that saw them exit two cup competitions and throw away a nine-point lead atop the Premier League table. It is anyone's guess which version of Arsenal turns up at the Metropolitano Stadium on Wednesday, where Atletico Madrid will eagerly await their opponent.
Like the Gunners, Atleti are also hard to read but for entirely different reasons. They have been marred by inconsistency all season, quote-unquote normal games hard to come by – only three of their last 19 games have seen fewer than three goals scored, those games marking the only occasions they have come out with clean sheets. They seem willing and able to put any team in a tough spot, though, and proved just that with a 3-2 aggregate win over Barcelona in the quarterfinals. They managed both legs expertly, first by maintaining a defensive resolve and limiting Barcelona to just 0.58 expected goals as they pressed for goals in the second half of the first leg and then by going toe-to-toe in an end-to-end second leg. There are a wide range of tactical styles they can break out, making them a fascinating foe for anyone – even if their success rate leaves something to be desired.
The Gunners, in contrast, do what they do well but have yet to demonstrate another stylistic mode of their own that will bail them out of trouble. Arsenal's defense has maintained its resolve for the most part but their inability to generate enough end product from open play has become costly, all at a very untimely period of the season. There is no time like the present to snap out of it but the onus is on the Gunners to actually do so, or continue the worst-timed funk in recent memory.