Paris Saint-Germain finally achieved a long-awaited first UEFA Champions League title in the very season that Kylian Mbappé decided to leave for Real Madrid. The team managed by Luis Enrique crushed Inter Milan in Munich (5-0) to, in addition to lifting the 'big-eared' trophy, seal the seventh treble in the history of European football.
The Parisian glory contrasts, logically, with the disastrous season of a Madrid team that ended without titles this 2025, crushed by FC Barcelona in La Liga, Copa del Rey, and Spanish Super Cup, as well as by Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-finals.
In fact, Paris left the 'gunners' in the 'semis' and closed a brutal season in which they displayed dynamic, offensive, and lethal football thanks to the excellent collective work of the squad. With Ousmane Dembélé leading the offensive trident, PSG fulfilled what Luis Enrique promised right after Mbappé's departure.
Luis Enrique anticipated the 'benefits' of Mbappé's departure for PSG
In an interview last summer, 'Lucho' dismissed a negative impact on his team from dispensing with what, in the previous seven seasons, was their main star.
"I am going to improve the team, without a doubt. Because the fact of having a player who moved wherever he wanted implies game situations that I, as a coach, do not control. Next year I am going to control them all," said the Asturian.
Well, the forecast of the former Spanish national team coach could not have been more accurate. Without Mbappé, PSG has been a real steamroller, with remarkable work with and without the ball to press and occupy spaces in all sectors of the field.
In addition, by not having 'Kiki' as a reference in the area, the offensive trident and the midfielders themselves have much more mobility, a key aspect to overwhelm the Inter defense. The 'nerazzurri' never had a fixed reference to mark and this allowed Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to find spaces easily.
A resigned Mbappé congratulates PSG on their first Champions League
Mbappé and his congratulatory message to PSG for winning the Champions League
After the match, 'Kiki' shared a congratulatory message to his former club through Instagram stories. "The great day has finally arrived. The victory and with the style of a whole club. Congratulations, PSG", wrote the '9' of Madrid accompanied by an image of the Champions League trophy.
With Kylian, Paris reached the final in 2020, falling to Bayern Munich (1-0). In addition, they played two semi-finals (2021, 2024) in which the team was eliminated by Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund, respectively.
In the remaining four seasons of Mbappé at the Parc des Princes, PSG always fell in the round of 16 against Real Madrid (2018 and 2022), Manchester United (2019) and Bayern Munich (2023).
For Luis Enrique, 2025 is his second treble, after the one obtained with Barça in 2015. Only Pep Guardiola (Barça and City) has achieved this feat on two occasions. And, in PSG, Ousmane Dembélé takes the opportunity to emerge as a favorite for the 2025 Ballon d'Or, being the top scorer and leader of the team this season with 33 goals and 13 assists.