Borussia Dortmund beat visiting Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the Champions League semi-finals first leg with a lone goal by Niclas Fullkrug on Wednesday.
Fullkrug received a long and lofted pass from Nico Schlotterbeck in the 35th minute, outpaced PSG defender Lucas Hernandez, and slotted in the bottom left corner past a helpless Gianluigi Donnarumma who tried to be on the goal line. PSG's World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe hit the post twice early in the second half but couldn't find an equalizer or more.
Dortmund players gesture to home crowds after beating PSG 1-0 in the Champions League semi-final first leg in Dortmund, Germany, May 1, 2024. /CFP
Dortmund lost and drew against PSG in September and December last year in the group stage, which lifted PSG's confidence to reduce the one-goal deficit when they host the second leg next week.
Dortmund, who last won the title in 1997, will continue to seek to return to the Champions League final since they last entered in 2013. Meanwhile, they have secured a seat in the next season through the European Performance Spots after the 1-0 victory.
Ranked fifth in the German Bundesliga, which is one of the two leagues with the best average performance across three European competitions, Dortmund's extra place in the next season comes with the tournament's expansion from 32 to 36 teams in 2024-25. With five clubs having qualified, Bundesliga can have six spots should Dortmund win the Champions League and finish fifth in Germany. Italian Serie A is the other European top-flight league to have received the extra place.
"We wanted to qualify for the Champions League through the Bundesliga and not this way," said Dortmund manager Edin Terzic. "But the fact that it will be enough to qualify as fifth is also partly down to our success, our contribution."
Earlier on Tuesday, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid drew 2-2 in the other semi-final first leg.
The final showdown will take place on June 2 at the Wembley Stadium in London.