Arsenal – PSG (2-0) – “With Gianluigi Donnarumma, there is something wrong”

His failed clearance against Karim Benzema in the round of 16 in 2022 in Madrid, his passivity against Barcelona and Dortmund from a corner in the quarter and semi-final in May… Gianluigi Donnarumma costs PSG too much in the matches that count. This Tuesday, it was only one match in the league phase but the test at Arsenal remained the first turning point of the PSG season. The Italian goalkeeper made another mistake. On a cross from Leandro Trossard, he misreads the trajectory and the race of Kai Havertz. The German striker is ahead of him, Donnarumma is too short (20th) on his fist exit and Paris leaves with a handicap that he will never recover from.

“When we see the brutal image of this goal, we inevitably say to ourselves that there is something wrong with Donnarummasays Christophe Lollichon, former Chelsea goalkeeper coach now in Dunkirk. OWe often find the same errors with him. On this action, I don’t know if he sees Havertz and in this type of situation, there is always doubt with him. There, it is again a problem of assessing the trajectory and reading the game. If he is a meter ahead, he does not take this goal but he does not anticipate. His positioning is too low but I repeat: did he take the information? Has he seen Havertz?“

As soon as he has to manage depth, particularly on aerial balls, the best goalkeeper of Euro 2021 is in great difficulty. A limit that poses real problems: “We have the impression that he always concedes the same kind of goal, continues Lollichon. Whenever there are several parameters to manage, there is always a risk. It’s not very reassuring.” In the 37th minute, the PSG goalkeeper conceded a second goal in the middle of a forest of legs.

Saka’s free kick goes through a mouse hole and surprises him. But Christophe Lollichon is much less severe on this situation: “There are a bunch of players in front of him and there are several possibilities for deflectionhe notes. This is an unexpected situation. In terms of his arms, it lacks a little accuracy because they are not placed halfway up from the start. But it’s very difficult, he doesn’t even have a quarter of a second to react.“

The Italian finished the match better with two nice saves on the ground against Martinelli in the second half. “He is still able to react and make saves in the second half but if he does not make these, he must change professionslices a scathing Lollichon. He does the job except for his intervention in front of Havertz and today it is a limit which prevents him from being a very very high level goalkeeper.“