Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich: five most memorable meetings

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The UEFA Champions League is back, and the round of 16 kicks off with a heavyweight clash between the French and German champions.

PSG and Bayern Munich have met 11 times in the competition before, with this article looking back at their five most memorable encounters.

Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich: Head to head Champions League record

Paris Saint-Germain wins: 6. Bayern Munich wins: 5.

Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich: UEFA Champions League meetings

2021 Champions League quarter-finals: Bayern Munich 3-3 Paris Saint-Germain- PSG advanced on away goals.

2020 Champions League Final: Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Bayern Munich.

2017 Champions League group stages. PSG 3-0 Bayern & Bayern 3-1 PSG.

2000 Champions League group stages. PSG 1-0 Bayern & Bayern 2-0 PSG.

1997 Champions League group stages. Bayern 5-1 PSG & PSG 3-1 Bayern.

1994 Champions League group stages. PSG 2-0 Bayern & Bayern 0-1 PSG.

2017: Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Bayern Munich

In the summer of 2017, Paris Saint-Germain broke the bank to bring in Neymar and Kylian Mbappé, costing around €402 million in total.

On matchday two of the group phase, PSG made their Champions League aspirations clear to all, demolishing Bayern Munich 3-0.

Dani Alves broke the deadlock after less than 100 seconds, before Edinson Cavani and Neymar were both on target.

Les Parisiens did top Group B, with five wins out of six, although they were dumped out in the round of 16 by Real Madrid.

Bayern Munich meantime sacked Carlo Ancelotti the day after this dismal display at Parc des Princes.

Jupp Heynckes came in, his fourth and final spell in charge, as Bayern got all the way to the semis, also ousted by Real.

1994: Bayern Munich 0-1 Paris Saint-Germain

Back in 1994, Paris Saint-Germain were making their debut in the Champions League proper, having won just their second Ligue 1 title the previous season.

Despite this lack of expirence, Luis Fernández’s side won all six group stage matches, twice beating Dynamo Kyiv, Spartak Moscow and, most-notably, Bayern Munich.

George Weah was on target in both victories over the Bavarian giants, including the only goal of the night at Olympiastadion, a stunning strike worthy of winning any game.

PSG then eliminated Johan Cruijff’s Barcelona in the quarter-finals, before being outclassed by reigning champions A.C. Milan in the semis.

This though was the first time les Parisiens had competed at the elite level of European football, with Weah’s winner in Munich living long in the memory.

1997: Bayern Munich 5-1 Paris Saint-Germain

Three years later, Bayern Munich certainly got revenge was they met in the group stages again.

At the time, only the group winners and the two best-ranked group runners-up reached the quarter-finals.

In Group E, both PSG and Bayern ended up on 12 points, with the German champions sneaking through by virtue of head-to-head.

This was largely thanks to a 5-1 demolition when the two clashed in Munich; Giovane Élber and Carsten Jancker both bagging braces.

This is one of just three occasions PSG have conceded 5+ in a European fixture, shipping six against Juventus in 1997 and, famously at Camp Nou 20 years later.

16 days on from this drubbing in Bavaria, les Rouge-et-Bleu got revenge at Parc des Princes, winning 3-1, but this was not enough to take them through at Bayern’s expense.

2021: Bayern Munich 2-3 Paris Saint-Germain

2021 felt like being Paris Saint-Germain’s year, with this zeitgeist never more pertinent than after their trip to Bavaria.

In this quarter-final first leg, Kylian Mbappé was absolutely sensational as PSG won 3-2 at a snowy Allianz Arena.

This was a rare thrilling behind-closed-doors games; it was end-to-end and could’ve produced far more than the five goals it did.

Six nights later, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scored against his former club as Parc des Princes, but PSG held on and snuck through by virtue of away goals: remember them?

Robert Lewandowski missed this tie injured, with Mauricio Pochettino’s team taking full advantage.

However, he could not deliver PSG’s first European Cup, with the French side dumped out by Manchester City in the last four.

2020: Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Bayern Munich

PSG and Bayern Munich did meet in the often forgotten Champions League Final.

Their clash came in 2020 in Lisbon, the culmination of the mini-tournament in August, played behind-closed-doors a mere five months after Covid-19 had shutdown the world.

During the lockdown, Bayern had, infamously, smashed Barcelona 8-2 before swatting aside Olympique Lyonnais.

PSG meantime came from behind to oust Atalanta, netting twice in stoppage time, before proving simply too strong for RB Leipzig.

With a frightening front three of Ángel Di María, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar, it looked set to finally be PSG’s time.

However, Thomas Tuchel’s team squandered numerous excellent chances in the final, with Manuel Neuer at his brilliant best.

Then, ironically, the night’s only goal was scored by a PSG academy graduate, with Kingsley Coman heading home for Bayern on the hour mark.

So, the German juggernauts picked up their sixth European Cup, while PSG’s wait for continental glory continues.