- Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to secure a 2-1 win over FC Barcelona in a thrilling UEFA Champions League match played on Wednesday evening
- The Parisians came to this Champions League tie missing key players such as captain Marquinhos, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue
Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to secure a 2-1 win over FC Barcelona in a thrilling UEFA Champions League match played on Wednesday evening.
Ferran Torres gave Barcelona the lead in the 19th minute after a brilliant play by Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford down the wing. However, PSG – who are the defending champions of Europe’s premier club competition – remained calm and found the leveller shortly before the break. Nuno Mendes beat three Barcelona defenders before crossing the ball to 19-year-old Senny Mayulu, who finished from close range.
PSG came to this Champions League tie missing key players such as captain Marquinhos, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue. They also lost midfielder Joao Neves in the warm-up.
However, the French giants remained solid against Barca and eventually got the winning goal in stoppage time. Moroccan defender Hakimi did an excellent job on the wing before sliding the ball to substitute Goncalo Ramos who fired home from close range and sparked wild celebrations among the away fans.
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PSG are the first team to score a last-minute winning goal against Barcelona in a European competition. Speaking after the match, Barca captain Frenkie de Jong said they were disappointed to have conceded in the last minutes of the game. The 28-year-old admitted that the visitors dominated them in the second half of the game.
“Very disappointing feeling at the end, when you concede in the last minute of the game, to lose at home, you have to be disappointed. They [PSG] were better in the final stages, in the second half in general. We began the game better. So it went back and forward, but it’s true, they were better in the second half.” De Jong told Movistar+, as per Al Jazeera.
Paris Saint-Germain currently have six points from two games while Barcelona have three points. The Ligue 1 giants deservedly won the UEFA Champions League title last season, thrashing Serie A side Inter Milan 5-0 in the final. Luis Enrique has built a strong team in Paris and they could be the team to beat again this season.
How Paris Saint-Germain Beat Barcelona
So many eyes were on the UEFA Champions League tie between Barcelona and PSG on Wednesday. The highly anticipated fixture was played at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, which is Barca’s home venue until the Camp Nou will be ready.
As expected, hosts Barcelona started the game strongly, with Rashford and Lamine Yamal impressing on the wings. The Catalans opened the scoring in the 19th minute when Rashford played well on the wing before finding Torres who easily beat the goalkeeper from close range.
Despite being the away team, PSG refused to succumb to pressure and found their way back into the game in the 38th minute when Mayulu slotted home. Nuno Mendes did a fantastic job down the flank, beating several Barca players before crossing to the 19-year-old, who finished brilliantly.
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PSG were the better side in the second half and almost took the lead with less than ten minutes left to play when Lee Kangi-in rattled the post with his well taken strike. Eventually, the visitors took the lead deep in stoppage time, with substitute Ramos bagging the winner.
