Have PSG rediscovered the form that led them to Champions League glory?

By Tom Burrows

London — On a crisp Tuesday night at Stamford Bridge, Paris Saint-Germain offered the most persuasive evidence yet that the swagger that carried them to a six-trophy harvest last season has not been lost, only delayed. A 3-0 victory over Chelsea, sealed 8-2 on aggregate, was delivered with the cold efficiency of champions and the exuberance of a side finally enjoying a clean bill of health.

Manager Luis Enrique had warned of “moments of suffering”; instead, his players inflicted them. From the sixth minute, when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia darted onto Matvei Safonov’s long clearance, twisted Mamadou Sarr inside-out and arrowed a left-foot shot beyond the goalkeeper, the contest felt less like a knockout tie than a training exercise. Ole’s rang from the away end before the half-hour mark, and by the time 17-year-old Senny Mayulu curled in the third midway through the second half, Chelsea’s evening had long since dissolved into damage-limitation.

The numbers underline PSG’s renaissance. Kvaratskhelia, introduced at 2-2 in the first leg, transformed that match with two goals and an assist in 28 minutes; he now has seven goals and four assists in Europe this campaign. Bradley Barcola, scoreless in the competition for more than a year, has struck twice in seven days and boasts seven goals in 14 appearances since the turn of 2026. With Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué back in contention—only Fabián Ruiz remained unavailable—Luis Enrique could unleash the full arsenal that injuries had kept locked away for months.

Yet the road back has been uneven. A 5-3 shoot-out win over Tottenham, a Coupe de France defeat to Paris FC, a wobbly 5-4 escape past Monaco in the play-off round and a Ligue 1 loss to the same opponents all hinted at frailties. Off-field clouds gathered when Achraf Hakimi was told he will face trial following a rape allegation, which he denies. A request to postpone the weekend fixture against Nantes—granted by the Ligue de Football Professionnel so the squad could rest—angered the relegation-threatened club and sparked furious fan protests depicting Nantes owner Waldemar Kita bowing to PSG’s Nasser al-Khelaifi.

Still, the table makes pleasant reading. Lens’ surprise loss at Lorient leaves PSG one point clear at the summit with a match in hand, and their European form is peaking ominously. They have scored 11 times across two ties with Chelsea, limited the Blues to a single clean sheet in 14 outings and rediscovered the late-game ruthlessness that edged past Nice, Barcelona and Marseille in the Trophée des Champions.

“We’ve always had confidence in this team,” Luis Enrique insisted afterwards. “People expect us to win every match easily because of last season. That’s impossible in football. We had difficulties, injuries… but we kept going. Overall, we’re having a very good season and we’re happy with where we are.”

The calendar now offers a breather before the quarter-finals, and on this evidence PSG have timed their crescendo to perfection. Whether last season’s heights can be scaled again remains uncertain, but the groove is back—and the rest of Europe has been put on notice.