Messi, Prince of Parc as PSG, win
On a night sprinkled with stardust, Paris Saint-Germain came out on top against Manchester City to secure a 2-0 victory, therefore ending the ‘Citizens’’ 15-game unbeaten run abroad in the UEFA Champions League (UCL).
After missing PSG’s draw with Club Brugge due to suspension, Idrissa Gueye opened the scoring just eight minutes in, smashing the ball into the top corner after Neymar’s mishit fell to him in the box. The visitors had a period where they saw plenty of possession, with Jack Grealish proving particularly threatening, but PSG largely stood firm until City wasted a superb opportunity midway through the half. Kevin De Bruyne’s ball into the box was met by Raheem Sterling, whose header hit the crossbar, before Bernardo Silva’s follow-up somehow did the same.
Kylian Mbappé created chances for Ander Herrera and Marquinhos in the space of a minute towards the end of the opening period, but neither was able to convert, and Gianluigi Donnarumma saved Rúben Dias’ header, the last effort on goal before HT.
City created two good chances via balls behind the PSG defence within 10 minutes of the restart, but Sterling sent his shot wide, while De Bruyne’s effort was denied by Donnarumma’s legs. After the hosts withstood waves of City attacks, Neymar had their best opportunity of the half when he was slipped through, but he couldn’t find the target under pressure.
The draw was taken out of City’s reach by Lionel Messi soon after, as the Argentine burst forward before playing a one-two with Mbappé and sticking a beauty of an effort past Ederson for his first PSG goal, downing his former mentor Pep Guardiola in the process. Donnarumma’s late save from a Riyad Mahrez free-kick ensured the Italian kept a clean sheet on his UCL debut.
Mauricio Pochettino will likely feel this result makes up for the draw in Belgium, especially given PSG had only won one of their previous five UCL clashes with English opposition. Meanwhile, Man City’s four-game winning streak against French clubs comes to an end.