Good evening, welcome to this top of the table clash in France as Paris Saint-Germain take on Lyon at the Parc des Princes.
A win for PSG will send them top as Neymar and co. will be chasing a fourth successive Ligue 1 title. Lyon, however, can leap-frog their opponents up to second with a victory in Paris tonight.
Both teams come into this game in good form, giving the prospect of an interesting matchup. Lyon have won their last four matches, with a comfortable 3-1 win at Metz last time out. PSG will want to build on their progression into the last sixteen of the Champions League in midweek, beating İstanbul Başakşehir 5-1 in the replayed match due to a racist allegation made towards the fourth official.
Embed from Getty ImagesLine-ups:
Embed from Getty Images
KICK OFF
1′ – We’re underway as an early, hopeful ball up to Memphis Depay is claimed by Keylor Navas.
3′ – A tustle between Presnel Kimpembe and Tinotenda Kadewere down the Lyon right results in a free kick for PSG.
5′ – Lyon almost in as a first time ball from Depay tries to find Kadewere only just evades his control and out for a goal kick.
7′ – An open start to this game sees Alessandro Florenzi’s low driven shot from the right hand side go wide. An entertaining start to this game gives the promise of waves of chances.
Embed from Getty Images10′ – Lucas Paqueta finds Houssem Aouar in the PSG box as he tries to find space for the shot but Abdou Diallo defends well.
12′ – Kadewere with a clumsy challenge on Neymar as he clips him, however, not receiving any further punishment. Free kick to PSG.
14′ – Lovely one-two between Kadewere and Depay which send Kadewere driving into the box down the right. He sends a low ball in but is intercepted.
16′ – PSG surge forward with Florenzi down the right and whips a promising ball into Mitchel Bakker but completely miss hits the first time shot.
19′ – Depay sends a low ball into the box which is easily cleared, resulting in a PSG counter with Moise Kean but Jason Denayer hunts him down well and cuts off any danger.
20′ – An open first 20 minutes has seen Lyon press PSG well, allowing them no time on the ball.
Embed from Getty Images
21′ – Fantastic balance by Aouar as he slips away and feeds Karl Toko Ekambi down the left but he couldn’t find Depay in the box.
23′ – Offside – Aouar loops the ball back in after a PSG clearance, which finds Kadewere in an offside position as his shot is saved by Navas.
28′ – Angel Di Maria links up with Florenzi down the right but Denayer again cuts out any danger.
29′ – Substitution – An early change made by Thomas Tuchel as Diallo is off for Thilo Kehrer. A switch this early will only mean an injury blow for Diallo.
32′ – A foul in the centre circle as Kadewere and Kimpembe collide. Kimpembe coming off worse will have Tuchel hoping he doesn’t have to change another centre back.
35′ – Over – Ekambi cuts inside as he charges at the PSG backline and feeds in Kadewere but he fires over.
35′ – GOAL – Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Lyon (Tinotenda Kadewere)
Fully deserved opener for Lyon. Kimpembe sloppily gives the ball away to Ekambi and he feeds in Kadewere who slots it calmly past Navas.
How will PSG respond?
39′ – Yellow Card – Very poor challenge by Leo Dubois as Neymar slips past him but Dubois clattered into him before he could stride away. Marco Verratti having words at PSG not happy with the challenge.
40′ – PSG not concentrating as Neymar swings a corner straight into the side netting. Lyon giving them a game and needing a response.
42′ – Neymar breaks down the left byline and whips a cross in towards Florenzi but headed away well by Maxwel Cornet.
43′ – Another cross towards Florenzi finds him in space and his ferocious shot is saved well by Anthony Lopes.
44′ – Neymar on the receiving end of another challenge as PSG step up the intensity in the final moments of the half. Free kick whipped in but Lopes punches away, heading into a minute of added time.
Half time – Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Lyon.
A big game gives a big performance by Lyon in the first half. They have hunted PSG down well making it extremely awkward for them. Lyon fully deserved to go ahead with a calm finish by Kadewere following a stray pass by Kimpembe. This the only goal in an entertaining first half due to the wide-open nature.
Lopes made a strong save denying Florenzi as Tuchel will be demanding a response in the second half. Rudi Garcia will be expecting more of the same knowing Tuchel will be deploying Kylian Mbappe in the second half if the score remains the same.
Second Half
45′ – Lyon get the second half underway.
46′ – Yellow card – Kehrer booked for a late challenge on Ekambi.
47′ – No surprise to see Mbappe warming up, Tuchel may be resting his hopes on him making the difference. Can PSG get back in this?
49′ – Decent cross by Leandro Parades just over Kean.
50′ – Speculative effort by Thiago Mendes but is saved well by Navas, no Lyon players gambled for the rebound though.
51′ – Hesitant defending by PSG leads to a ball through for Depay whom is brought down. Furious, Lyon protest a penalty but the referee waves away.
56′ – Yellow card – Parades goes into the referees book as he kicks through Depay’s left foot. Silly challenge and PSG need to keep their head as they have shown ill discipline at Marseille earlier this season, resulting in three red cards.
60′ – Lyon toy with PSG as they keep hold of the ball well until a slightly overhit pass through by Paqueta is picked up by Navas. They look extremely comfortable, no nerves, no complacency, very confident in their play.
63′ – Neymar attempts a one-two with Kean but Mendes tracks the run very well to clear.
Embed from Getty Images64′ – Foul by Depay on Parades as PSG line up much needed changes.
64′ – Triple Substitution – No surprises as Mbappe, Ander Herrera and Idrissa Gueye are on for Di Maria, Verratti and Paredes.
65′ – Substitution – Garcia makes a smart change as booked Dubois is off for Mattia De Sciglio. After that rash challenge, no point in risking a second yellow.
67′ – Great save – Paqueta picks up the loose ball on the edge of the area and fires it towards goal. Navas gets down well and parries it wide.
69′ – Neymar sends a ball in from a free kick which is cleared to Ekambi. He touches it round Bakker, forcing a straight race between the two. Bakker comes out on top well otherwise Ekambi was in one on one.
71′ – Mbappe’s first contribution sees him fire a low ball into Neymar which is defended well by Kadewere and cleared by Marcelo.
71′ – Yellow card – Petulance from Neymar as he pushed De Sciglio into Lopes causing him to go down in pain.
72′ – Substitution – PSG make another change which sees Kean go off for Rafinha.
75′ – PSG are yet to register a meaningful attack this second half. If fans were here, they would be growing frustrated with the lack of urgency from their team.
77′ – Triple Substitution – Depay, Aouar and Kadewere are all off for Moussa Dembele, Bruno Guimaraes and Sinaly Diomande.
Embed from Getty Images80′ – Long ball towards Ekambi sees his attempted cross deflected for a corner. However, it leads to nothing.
84′ – Free kick whipped in towards Danilo Pereira but his glancing header is nowhere near on target.
85′ – Guimaraes is down temporarily as the ball strikes his face.
He is up now and able to continue.
86′ – Visible frustration from Mbappe after a misplaced pass, more or less sums up their evening.
87′ – PSG trying to apply more pressure as a mistake from Paqueta gives it to Rafinha who tries to fashion a shot in the box but defended well yet again.
88′ – Substitution – Garcia makes his final change as Paqueta is off for Maxence Caqueret.
91′ – Into six minutes of added time sees Lyon break on a depleated PSG defence as Dembele holds the ball up well and slips in Guimaraes. He loses his footing at the crucial time making it a routine save by Navas.
92′ – Chance – Mbappe finds space on the edge of the box but smashes the ball wide. Many strikers would bury an opportunity like that. Not going to be PSG’s night.
95′ – Yellow card – Kimpembe holds off Dembele from breaking away resulting in a yellow. Lyon will take their time.
96′ – Yellow card – Mendes gets the yellow for bringing Neymar down. He goes down in anguish as replays show his ankle rolling over. Not a pleasant sight.
Neymar clearly in agony as stretcher is required, hopefully this isn’t too bad.
97′ – VAR Review: Red Card – After a VAR review, Mendes’ challenge has been judged to be a red, so he’s off.
Resulting free kick is so poor, straight into Lopes’ grasp.
Full Time – PSG 0-1 Lyon.
Wonderful performance from Lyon as they beat PSG in their own back for the first time in 13 years! More crucially, it springs them up to second in the league with PSG going down to third.
A horrid night overall for Tuchel’s men, a bad result compiled by an injury to Neymar which looked bad. Hopefully the injury isn’t too bad as we find out the extent of it over the coming days.
For more Overtime sport content click here and for more football content click here.
