UCL: Ousmane Dembele Nets Thunderous Goal Against Barcelona, Celebrates Wildly Against His Ex Club

• PSG's Ousmane Dembele was on target against his former club, FC Barcelona
• Unfortunately, the 26-year-old ended up on the losing side as Barca won 3-2
• He will hope to help PSG reverse the scoreline in the second leg next Tuesday

PSG winger, Ousmane Dembele, belatedly opened his goal-scoring account in 2024 with a thunderous effort against FC Barcelona in the first leg of their quarterfinal tie on Wednesday evening.

The Frenchman, who swapped the Catalan giants for Les Parisiens last summer, rifled home from an impossible angle, poetically marking his first goal of the calendar year.

Dembele took it up a notch with his celebration. While most players tend to have a muted celebration when playing against their former clubs out of sheer respect, the 26-year-old did the opposite.

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Dembele's goal and celebration vs Barcelona

After Kylian Mbappe's initial cross was cleared out half-heartedly by the visitors, the ball located Ousmane in the box, and he skipped past one opponent before letting fly with his left foot.

Right after the ball nestled at the back of the net, the 2022 World Cup runner-up wheeled away with his arms wide open as he celebrated his goal, eschewing any form of pre-existing loyalty to Barcelona, as cited by PSG Talk.

What happened after Dembele's goal?

Just two minutes after Dembele's goal, Vitinha clinched the hosts' lead with a polished finish.

Nonetheless, the lead was fleeting, as Raphinha netted his second with a pinpoint volley after 12 minutes, leaving the match finely balanced at 2-2.

However, the victory was ultimately secured by Andreas Christensen in the 77th minute, as he powered a header past PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, per Eurosport.

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Fans slam Mbappe's underwhelming performance

Meanwhile, Mbappe's underwhelming display in the Champions League has prompted scrutiny, particularly given the looming possibility of a transfer to Barcelona's archrivals Real Madrid this summer, Sports Brief reports.

The French sensation registered only three shots, succeeded in just two out of ten ground duels, and completed only one out of four dribble attempts.

One fan took it to the extreme by mocking PSG's top goal scorer, drawing parallels to his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo.