In Spanish football culture, big games are referred to as "finals" whether they literally are or not. With so much at stake, "final" is the perfect term to describe the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Bayern Munich.

In the sleet and snow of Munich, these two sides put on the game of the tournament. A week later and on the perfectly manicured pitch at the Parc des Princes in Paris, France, it felt as if the previous tie hadn't ended and that this was the real second half.

Intense from the off, PSG knew their one goal advantage wasn't enough against a team that has scored away in every single game for one month shy of two years. Upfront, this new feeling PSG were terrifying. Manager Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly worked wonders behind the scenes to improve his side's mentality and get them working together as a team.

On the field, playing Neymar behind Kylian Mbappe as the crux of the three in the 4-2-3-1 means less wasted shots in Neymar's hunt to be a YouTube superstar and it also creates a spine of quick ball movement directly through the middle supported along the flanks by Julian Draxler and Angel di Maria.

Di Maria's main attribute is his passing so he tended to remain slightly further up the pitch. Whenever the ball reached Mbappe, Neymar and even Draxler if he was in a high enough position, Bayern ended up a step behind.

They were lucky not to concede. Slightly beyond the opening half hour, a deflected free kick ended up at the feet of Neymar. Bayern were still back to defend. He saw this and instead of trying to dart through all the bodies, Neymar curled a shot which went directly over Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer but bounced off the bar. Only two minutes later, he broke through and totally curved Neuer again – only to hit the post.

Marquinhos, PSG's most versatile player, was unavailable so Danilo Pereira dropped back and he, in turn, was replaced in midfield by Leandro Paredes. This lack of box-to-box pace was the only major change in Les Parisiens and it undid them on the evening.

Hie absence left plenty of room for Bayern on the far side of the midfield. Any time Bayern pressed, they faced practically no opposition until Paredes and Idrissa Gueye tracked back to join the back four.

In the 40th minute, Bayern had unleashed an assault. After a series of quick passes, David Alaba took a low shot. PSG keeper Keylor Navas dropped down to save it, causing the ball to ping into the air. Eric Maxim Coupo-Moting dived in and knocked it across the bar with his head.

1-0 on the night wasn't enough. 3-3 on aggregate would send PSG through to the next round as they had two away goals.

Bayern smelled blood. However, in the second half, their well-known absences ultimately ruined it for them in the round. Their link up play was sensational, what they lacked was bite, killer instinct: Serge Gnabry and Robert Lewandowski.

It is highly unfortunate that for the two hardest games all season Bayern were without their two best players. Thomas Muller is a maverick and can't be relied on to ensure goals, Alaba is solid but plays as left back and Coupo-Moting simply isn't at a high enough level yet.

In the 53rd minute di Maria nutmegged Neuer in front of the goal. The ball trundled horizontally across the goal and how nobody touched it, now breeze blew it across the line, is unknown.

As time ran out, Bayern got caught in two minds. They wanted to throw everything forwards and maximize their chances for a goal – they also didn't want to leave space for Mbappe and Neymar to work in. Some of the chances they made in this game were extraordinary – perhaps more extraordinary that they weren't converted.

It ended 1-0, just as in Lisbon last year when Bayern beat PSG to win the trophy. No such joy this time: Bayern's slim win got them eliminated.

Across 180 minutes, the champions of Germany and France played some of the greatest football seen in years. PSG, once a joke, are heading into the semifinals as tournament favorites and Bayern are heading home because they must; if they faced anybody else, they would have progressed without much trouble at all. This wasn't the 2020/21 Champions League final but it was the "final."