Champions League: Battle of the Nouveau Riche

RB Leipzig vs Paris Saint-Germain

In this most bizarre of Champions League tournaments we’ve reached the semi-finals, and two new kids in the block, with modest European records but plenty of cash, come head-to-head in the heat of Lisbon on Tuesday night.

Paris Saint-Germain are one of the richest clubs on the planet but, ever since huge investment from Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Qatari ruler, elevated them to Europe’s football elite in 2011, they have struggled to break through the Champions League glass ceiling. But they must now be starting to believe this could finally be their year.

And what a story it would be if Julian Nagelsmann could guide RB Leipzig to the final, just 11 years after the club was founded and after only its fourth season in the Bundesliga.

The money to propel the Leipzig club up through the leagues and to the brink of European glory came from Red Bull GmbH, the energy drink company which already owned Red Bull Salzburg and the New York Red Bulls.

They say money can’t buy you love, but it can bring success, particularly if you have coaches of the calibre of PSG’s Thomas Tuchel and Leipzig’s Julian Nagelsmann at the helm.

This promises to be a cracking battle between two fiercely ambitious clubs, though PSG have a clear edge. Here at SBOBET, we have the French champions heavily odds on to advance to their first Champions League final, at odds of 1.36, while Leipzig are available at 3.00.

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Talking Points

Big guns dropping like flies

The quarter-finals threw out some spectacular Champions League 2020 results. Firstly, FC Bayern slaughtered Barcelona 8-2 and then Lyon stunned Manchester City with a 3-1 victory.

With two of the three favourites out of the competition, the Champions League 2020 betting odds now pitch FC Bayern as strong favourites, with Liverpool, Juventus and Real Madrid also out of the picture.

The old guard of Europe has crumbled in recent weeks; can the new boys emerge from the wreckage triumphant?

PSG’s Euro dream

Head coach Thomas Tuchel has guided PSG to its fourth domestic quadruple this season and his side is on a winning streak of 11 games, but they will count themselves lucky to be in this semi-final.

Only two injury-time goals saved PSG from defeat to Atalanta in the quarter-final, as goals from Marquinhos and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting turned the tie on its head to break Italian hearts.

Tuchel has a side oozing with creative talent. Mauro Icardi has five goals in this competition while Brazilian star Neymar has three goals and three assists.

Former Manchester United midfielder Angel Di Maria has four assists, but in Kylian Mbappe PSG have a word superstar. The young French striker took the Russia 2018 World Cup by storm and he continues to shine in Europe, scoring five goals and making five assists in this tournament.

Tyler to the rescue

Tyler Adams' goal ended RB Leipzig's Champions League match against Atletico Madrid in a 2-1 victory — Tyler Adams celebrates with RB Leipzig teammate Yussuf Poulsen after winning vs Atletico Madrid

Red Bull left it late as well and just about made it through to the semi-finals thanks to an 88^th-minute strike from substitute Tyler Adams to beat Atletico Madrid.

Odds of 3.00 to advance to the Champions League final will do just nicely for Leipzig coach Nagelsmann. It’s a one-in-three chance and when you see it like that there’s everything to play for.

His key man is midfield ace Marcel Sabitzer. He has four goals in the competition and he teed up the Red Bulls’ first against Atleti, with an inch-perfect cross which Dani Olmo headed home.

History

Founded in 1970, PSG won their first silverware, the Coupe de France, in 1982 and followed that up with a Ligue 1 title in 1986.

A takeover by French TV giants Canal + made the Parisians a real force in the 1990s and then the European football world changed when Al Thanes’ Qatar Sports Investments group stepped in with its billions in 2011.

Seven Ligue 1 titles have followed as PSG dominated the French league but have struggled to make any serious inroads into the Champions League…until now.

The two sides have met just once before. Still in its infancy as a European football power, Leipzig beat Paris Saint-Germain 4-2 in a friendly game back in 2014.

Recent form favours the French, while they are on an 11 match winning streak, Leipzig have won three from the last six.