New Blow for PSG: Paris loses 2-1 against Lyon in Ligue 1
After tapping into their resources on Tuesday night at Anfield to watch the Champions League semi-finals, PSG was abruptly halted in Ligue 1 by Lyon this Sunday (2-1), reigniting the title race. Just five days after their brave trip to northwest England (2-0), the euphoria quickly faded within the Parisian ranks, as they used up a crucial opportunity in Ligue 1. With a postponed match against Nantes scheduled for Wednesday, PSG finds itself once again under pressure from Lens, who are now just one point behind. The clash on May 13 between the two teams will be crucial in the race for the French championship title.
Against Lyon at Parc des Princes, nothing resembled the success of the previous week: missing several key players (Dembélé, Marquinhos, Kvaratskhelia, Joao Neves, and Mendes – out injured), lacking real rhythm, too passive in duels, and notably ineffective in the opponent’s box, the players under Luis Enrique’s command – reshuffled with defender Lucas Beraldo in midfield – played without the ideas or values shown last Tuesday.
New Missed Penalty for Paris
Safonov, one of the heroes in Anfield on Tuesday, chose not to stop Afonso Moreira, who concluded a swift counter-attack also led by Endrick (2-0, 18th minute). However, the Russian goalkeeper managed to block a dangerous shot from Moreira after half-time (52nd minute) and was decisive in front of Endrick (62nd minute).
The other bad news came from the infirmary. While they welcomed back Fabian Ruiz – who played twenty minutes after a three-month absence due to a knee injury – the Parisians lost their midfielder and playmaker Vitinha, who injured his right ankle. The Portuguese, a key figure in Luis Enrique’s tactics, got hurt after a recent challenge during the first half. The vice-captain went straight to the locker room limping and was replaced by Warren Zaïre-Emery, who was surprisingly on the bench at the start of the match.
Typically a substitute, striker Gonçalo Ramos was fielded in the center to give Ousmane Dembélé, who scored twice on Tuesday and played for half an hour this Sunday, a breather. The magnificent goal by “Kvara”, also substituted in for thirty minutes after a partnership with Fabian Ruiz, was the only bright spot for PSG towards the end of the match (90+5th minute).
Ramos, on the other hand, never truly posed a threat (27th, 42nd, 45+2 minutes) as he struggled to shake off Lyon’s defense on his teammates’ crosses, especially those from Désiré Doué. Even when he fought to assist his teammates, the shots from Lucas Beraldo (17th minute) and Bradley Barcola were saved (29th minute). Moreover, he failed to break the PSG’s penalty curse: his own penalty, earned by Lucas Hernandez and pushed by Maitland-Niles, was easily saved by Dominik Greif (33rd minute), one of Lyon’s standout performers in this match. This marked the sixth penalty miss for PSG across all competitions out of twelve penalties taken this season.
