Four days before a new meeting in the Champions League in Haifa on Wednesday, coach Christophe Galtier had decided to align his trio of stars Messi-Neymar-Mbappé. But despite a clear domination and several opportunities, the Parisian stars were generally disappointed, only Neymar having managed to find the opening in the first period, ideally served by Lionel Messi (30th).
Faced with a team ranked in 17th position before kick-off and having won only one match since the start of the season, the task was not insurmountable and the Parisians, even by playing the economy , should have won more widely and without too much trouble, they who are used to martyring the defenses of L1.
But Paris can say a big thank you to Gianluigi Donnarumma, who stopped a penalty from Islam Slimani (70th) following a foul by Presnel Kimpembe on Noah Fadiga. A rescue in the form of redemption after his hazardous exit from a corner against Juventus Turin (2-1), Tuesday in C1.
“Overall, in terms of intensity and pace, there was fatigue, there was such an outpouring of energy against Juve that it was a bit buggy. When you’re at Paris, we can’t let the opponent hope like that. It’s the 5th game in 15 days and this one comes just behind a big Champions League game with what that entails in terms of intensity and pressure . There was a comeback somewhere,” said Galtier.
With this sixth victory, even narrow, the champions of France however continue their faultless on the national scene after having started their European campaign well. And if Kylian Mbappé did not score as against Juve, Neymar was again decisive with an 8th achievement which allows him to fly over the scorer rankings.
– Paris loses Kimpembe –
The Brazilian, who is now the 4th goalscorer in club history, is indeed PSG’s handyman for now. If his future in the capital was uncertain during the off-season, Paris can be delighted to have kept him and to find his N.10 at such a level.
“If he’s had a good start to the season, it’s because he puts seriousness and concentration into his work. He’s very invested in the team. I knew he was a great player, I’m discovering that he’s a great pro,” rejoiced Galtier.
Mbappé was less fortunate in his attempts (15th, 45th 1, 58th) as was Messi (20th, 45th, 50th, 69th), despite several offerings from Neymar.
If Galtier kept the “MNM” in place and only proceeded to a very low turnover despite an overloaded calendar (establishments of Danilo and Juan Bernat), he took advantage of the end of the match to give time of play to some of the recruits still little or never seen at work in the Parisian jersey.
The Spaniard Fabian Ruiz, who entered in the 63rd minute to replace Marco Verratti, notably had his first steps with his new club. Not really a gift for the community, the production of Parisians having gradually disintegrated without its Italian metronome.
In addition to the penalty, Donnarumma had to intervene on a header from Slimani (79th) to avoid an equalizer in Brest. To make matters worse, PSG then lost Kimpembe, released in the dying moments through injury and unavailable for at least two games.
In short, nothing to get carried away on the Parisian side, who just provided the essentials, without shining.
