Joe Cole surprisingly rules huge team out of winning Champions League

Joe Cole discussing the Champions League contenders (Picture: TNT Sports)

Joe Cole is still backing PSG to win the Champions League and has surprisingly ruled Barcelona out of winning the competition.

French champions Paris Saint-Germain and Spanish league leaders Barcelona became the first two teams to advance to the semi-finals on Tuesday night.

PSG survived a huge scare to beat Aston Villa 5-4 on aggregate while Barcelona also lost on the night but still progressed courtesy of a 5-3 aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund.

Paris Saint-Germain, already crowned Ligue 1 champions for 2024-25, will face Arsenal or Real Madrid in the semis, while Barcelona’s next assignment will be against Inter Milan or Bayern Munich.

Despite PSG’s major scare against Villa, Cole still fancies the French giants to finally end their wait for a Champions League trophy.

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Asked if he would be sticking with his selection, having revealed after the quarter-final first legs that he was backing PSG for the Champions League, Cole told TNT Sports: ‘Absolutely.

‘We all remember the PSG side of a few years ago. They were winning league titles but you can’t win a tournament like this playing like that.

Barcelona progressed despite losing to Borussia Dortmund (Picture: Getty)

‘Credit to the people at PSG who came together and said they were going in another direction.

‘They’re all on the right path and I really, really fancy them to win it. I really do. I’m doubling down.’

Discussing Barcelona’s hopes after they beat Bundesliga side Dortmund over two legs, Cole added: ‘I think Barcelona showed enough frailties tonight.

‘I don’t think they’ll have enough to win it. There were enough times that they were carved open.

PSG edged past Aston Villa to reach the semi-finals (Picture: Getty)

‘I think that high line against Munich or Inter Milan in the next round will get them in trouble.

‘All the credit goes to Dortmund. From the Barcelona perspective, the frailties that I saw, I think they are frailties that are going to be here.

‘And for these young lads in the Barcelona team, who I think will go very, very close and maybe win the Champions League next year or the year after, I think what they’ll learn from this is how European football can flip between legs.

‘You’re 4-0 up, you’re strolling. It’s only half-time. A goal can change. Teams can change. It’s something that you have to manage. Young players will learn a lot from tonight.

Dortmund enjoyed success against Barca’s high line (Picture: Getty)

‘I think [Wojciech] Szczesny showed a little bit of a rashness early on. I think [Marc-Andre] ter Stegen comes back in for the semi-final.

‘That strengthens them. I still think Inter Milan or Bayern Munich, playing this team in a semi-final, will win the game.’

Owen Hargreaves agreed with Cole’s take and said he too had major doubts over Barcelona, who are currently four points ahead of Real Madrid in the La Liga title race.

‘You have to credit Dortmund,’ Hargreaves said. ‘They created a lot of good chances over the two ties.

Arsenal are in Madrid to face Real (Picture: Getty)

‘We said Barca play this way for a reason. They play that high line. Teams are going to create chances against them.

‘But I don’t think Hansi Flick really cares, because they score so many goals going the other way.

‘Joe’s right. They looked a little bit vulnerable today. I think looking at the semi-final, teams will look at that and think we can get at this defence.’

Barcelona boss reacts to Dortmund defeat

Speaking after Barcelona’s defeat to Dortmund, Nou Camp manager Hansi Flick said: ‘We are in the semi-finals.

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‘Two games were judged on this and we deserve to be in the next round. They have a great team and made life very difficult for us, but we’re through to the next round and that’s what counts.

‘We didn’t play at our best today but that was also down to Dortmund, who did really well.

‘What the team has achieved in recent weeks is phenomenal. We’re now one step further, but we’re still a long way from the end.’

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