Ligue 1 McDonald's, matchday 16, 18/12/24
Paris Saint-Germain suffered a major blow in the battle for the Ligue 1 title, beating AS Monaco (2-4) to continue their unbeaten run in the league and extend their leap into the top flight to 10 points.
Monaco were absent from the races in the first half as PSG continued the good form they showed this weekend against another European challenger, Olympique Lyonnais. Achraf Hakimi hit the post with a misdirected cross, after which Bradley Barcola forced Philipp Köhn into a save at his near post. Vanderson had to clear the ball off the line after a header from João Neves, after which the controversial moment followed.
Breel Embolo brought in Wilfried Singo. His heavy touch allowed Gianluigi Donnarumma to advance on goal and close the corner. Singo got a shot away, but a weak one, and his follow-up shot hit the PSG goalkeeper square in the face. Bloodied and bruised, Donnarumma left, but Singo, who already had a yellow card, stayed on.
Les Parisiens took the lead minutes later through Désiré Doué, who fired Achraf Hakimi's ball into the penalty area for the first time for his first Ligue 1 goal for his new club. Köhn, who replaced the injured Radoslaw Majecki, was kept busy in goal and made a series of saves before half-time, including a split-second deflection from his own defender, Mohammed Salisu.
In the end, Monaco were lucky to be only one goal behind. They made the most of their lifelines. Monaco restored parity from the penalty spot, with Eliesse Ben Seghir smashing the ball home after a bouncing ball in the box hit Marquinhos' hand. Seven minutes later Les Monégasques the match was turned on its head when Breel Embolo tapped Maghnes Akliouche's cross to the front post.
But the lead did not last. Just four minutes later, PSG leveled the score again. Fabián Ruiz's shot was well parried by Köhn, but was in danger again. Ousmane Dembelé was the first to react when he poked home. PSG then took a late lead when two substitutes combined: Lee Kang-in found Gonçalo Ramos' head from a corner.
Takumi Minamino had a chance to level the score, but after good work from Akliouche he failed to get home. His shot was weak with the Frenchman's pass slightly behind him. Lee almost gave PSG a fourth place late in the final phase, but his curling effort was tipped onto the post by Köhn. They got their fourth through Dembélé, who stopped Singo before chipping Köhn.
PSG continue their good away form and their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season, but of their twelve wins this was the most important. “The question of the title would be difficult [if we lost],” Akliouche said before the match. With the gap between PSG and Monaco now at ten points, it is certainly a mountain to climb.
Philipp Kohn – 7
He did his best to keep Monaco in this draw. His distribution was questionable throughout, but his shooting was not. He made a big save from Barcola early on, and even his save from Lee in the closing stages gave Les Monégasques hope of some sort of result.
Vanderson-5
Mohammed Salisu – 4
Thilo Kehrer – 4
Wilfried Singo – 6
Lamine Camara – 3
A difficult match for the Senegalese midfielder, who was crowned CAF's Young Player of the Year again earlier this week. The game passed him by many times with his positioning often questioned, while he lacked efficiency and clarity of thought on the ball.
Soungoutou Magassa – 4
Aleksandr Golovin – 5
Eliesse Ben Seghir – 6
Maghnes Akliouche – 7
For Didier Deschamps, Akliouche impressed in the second half after a quiet first 45 minutes. It was his sharp run that earned Monaco's penalty and his inch-perfect ball that found Embolo for their second. He punctuated the match with moments of magic that will surely have caught the French manager's attention.
Breel Embolo – 6
Gianluigi Donnarumma – N/A
Replaced by Matvei Safonov (4) after a collision with Singo after 21 minutes.
Warren Zaire-Emery – 5
Marquinhos – 4
Willian Pacho – 6
Achraf Hakimi – 7
Fabian Ruiz – 6
Vitinha – 5
João Neves – 6
Désiré Doué – 7
After a difficult start, Doué is now making his mark on his new club. His range of passing was excellent and when there was space to exploit, he exploited it. He scored his first goal for PSG in Ligue 1 and took it expertly, the first time.
Ousmane Dembele – 8
There were reports of a thawing of tensions between Dembele and Luis Enrique ahead of the match, and it showed on the pitch. Dembélé was diligent in his defensive work and showed predatory attacking instincts, often evading him, on two occasions, reacting quickly for his first goal, breaking the offside trap and passing Köhn for the second. It was a real top performance from the (false) 9.
Bradley Barcola – 6
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
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