Cologne (Germany) (AFP)
The Emperor of Europe has his "Decima"!
FC Barcelona won a tenth Champions League by flying over the final against Danish novice Aalborg, Sunday in Cologne where PSG still finished third after another failure.
The Final Four of the C1, played over a weekend, often holds surprises.
The Parisian club has also been able to see it at its expense.
But where Paris Saint-Germain failed, Barça was not surprised by Aalborg, outclassed 36 to 23.
Beaten in the final of the previous edition against the Germans in Kiel, the Catalan giant did not want to leave Cologne on a new frustration.
So he applied himself from the first period to gain the upper hand over Aalborg, in the final for his first participation in the last four.
With his fast play and a Gonzalo Perez de Vargas (MVP of Final 4) solid in the cage, Barça had five lengths ahead at the break (16-11).
The result of an offensive festival after a good start from the Scandinavian club.
The addition could have been more robust at the break if the Swedish goalkeeper Mikael Aggefors had not slowed down the Catalan assaults (8 saves on 24 shots in the first act).
But Aalborg was finally deceived only during the first ten minutes.
Because in the second half, the gap continued to swell.
The change of goalkeeper, with the entry of Simon Gade, did not change the turn of the game.
It is an end in apotheosis for several pillars of the Spanish club, whose face will change next season.
Head coach since 2009, Xavi Pascual will leave to join Bucharest just like the French pivot Cédric Sorhaindo.
The 40-year-old center-half and captain Raul Entrerrios can put an end to a busy career, including three Champions Leagues with Barça, a world champion title (2005) and two European coronations with the Spain.
"The great captain", his nickname, can be proud of the Blaugrana who have had a perfect season.
Their only defeat, they suffered in the final of the 2020 edition of the C1, exceptionally postponed in December due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
This year, the Catalan ogre also got hold of all the domestic trophies.
On the roof of Europe, the reconquest has been strewn with pitfalls since his previous coronation in 2015 but he now has even more room.
The most successful club behind him, Gummersbach (Germany), totals five crowns.
Paris SG has still not won a single one.
He finished for the fourth time on the third step of the podium, winning in front of Nantes (31-28).
A consolation prize that will not forget his disillusionment with Aalborg.
"Of course that's not why we come to the Final Four. But it shows that every time Paris has been able to bounce back from a failure. It's true that failure has made badly, it was hard to take. It's a whole season that comes to an end suddenly, when it was doable, "commented left winger Mathieu Grébille.
- Goalkeeper problem in Paris -
To hope to return to the final, as in 2017 and finally win the Cup, the Parisian club will have to analyze the why and how of its defensive bankruptcy in front of Aalborg.
But also to solve his goalkeeper problem.
Vincent Gérard and Yann Genty were not up to the task in Cologne.
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Nantes, for its part, is showing great promise, with a rising young generation (Monar, Briet, Damatrin).
The "H" certainly did not manage to reach the final as in 2018, but he did not deserve in the half against Barça (31-26) after his brilliant blows against two "big", Kielce and Veszprem, in the previous rounds.
With its two trophies (2003, 2008), Montpellier remains the only French club to have won in the competition.
© 2021 AFP