Last-gasp Choupo crushes La Dea dreams
IT was heartbreak for Atalanta when last-gasp goals from Marquinhos and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting earned PSG the victory.
Thomas Tuchel’s side will now face RB Leipzig or Atletico Madrid, who play tonight.
Mario Pasalic had given the Italian side hopes of a first European semi-final for 32 years when he put them ahead in the 26th minute.
And it looked like they would hold on as Neymar spurned chance after chance. PSG did not introduce Kylian Mbappe until the hour mark and he also failed to find his way through.
But with 90 minutes on the clock Choupo-Moting crossed for Neymar, who passed to Marquinhos – and his shot went in off Atalanta defender Mattia Caldara.
Three minutes later Neymar passed to Mbappe, who found former Stoke forward ChoupoMoting to tap in.
And the PSG hero said: “It was a crazy game. A tough game against a tough opponent. It wasn’t easy.
“I thought when I was coming on ‘we can’t lose, we can’t go home like this’. I was confident in myself and the team. It was a little history of Paris.
“We believe in ourselves. Everyone knows we have top quality indivuals but we wanted to show it also as a team. I’m very happy we did it today.
Atalanta had been playing in their first Champions League campaign. Pasalic said: “It’s a pity, we were so close but that’s the Champions League, teams with quality upfront can score two goals in two minutes
“The disappointment is there, so are regrets. But we want to look forward and be more prepared for the Champions League next season. We did all we possibly could.”