Paris Saint-Germain striker Ousmane Dembele has been named UEFA Champions League player of the season after leading his team to their first-ever trophy with a commanding 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in Munich on Saturday. After an inspirational campaign under Luis Enrique, seven PSG players featured in the competition's 2024/25 Team of the Season.
Dembele, who scored eight goals throughout the tournament, delivered two assists in the final, earning high praise from the UEFA Technical Observer Group.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! "Dembele has taken on the role of a leader in the Paris Saint-Germain team, as we saw in the final with how he worked so hard, pressing from the front," the committee explained. "He created doubts for their opponents match after match with his clever movement, dropping deep to give his team superiority in the midfield."
The team of the season included PSG players Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, and teenage sensation Desire Doue, who scored twice in the final. Inter Milan's Alessandro Bastoni, Arsenal's Declan Rice, and Barcelona duo Raphinha and Lamine Yamal completed the lineup.
"We've made this selection of players, particularly in the attack, to reflect the exceptional mobility which was such a feature of the victorious Paris Saint-Germain team's approach," stated the UEFA report. "The forward line selected represents this – a flexible team with attacking players who can interchange positions."
Doue, who emerged as a key player during the knockout stages, was named the competition's young player of the year ahead of Barcelona's Lamine Yamal. The Spaniard's five goals and three assists in 13 appearances was not enough to beat the PSG teenager to the award.
"Doue has been a revelation this season," UEFA declared. "He made an incredible breakthrough in the knockout phase, going to the final and producing a Player of the Match performance on Saturday night, becoming the first teenager to score twice in a final."
Dembele being named Player of the Season could also influence the upcoming Ballon d'Or voting, scheduled for September 22. PSG boss Luis Enrique backed Dembele to claim the award, saying, "I'd give the Ballon d'Or to Ousmane Dembele, simply for the way he defends."
Yamal and Raphinha are also considered frontrunners for the Ballon d'Or award, owing to their impressive campaigns, both in Spain and in Europe.
UEFA's 2024/25 Team of the Season
Goalkeeper- Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain)
Defenders- Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Alessandro Bastoni (Inter)
- Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain)
Midfielders- Vitinha (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Declan Rice (Arsenal)
Forwards- Lamine Yamal (Barcelona)
- Désiré Doué (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Raphinha (Barcelona)
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