First the astonishment, then the whistles, tinged with exasperation and weariness. The public at the Parc des Princes expressed their dissatisfaction on Wednesday, November 6, at the end of a match that Paris Saint-Germain could not afford to lose, that it should never have lost, but that he still lost against Atlético de Madrid (1-2). Luis Enrique’s players suffered this setback on one of the Colchoneros’ rare attacks, with a goal from Angel Correa (90ᵉ+ 3). At the same time, the referee whistled the end of the match. Curtain.
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This defeat leaves the Parisians, many stunned at the end of the meeting, bogged down in doubts which continue to grow, match after match, in the Champions League. Halfway through, after four matches, PSG is only 25th – out of 36 teams – in the league phase, and has only four measly points, with one victory, one draw and two defeats. Worse, he has already played three of his four matches at home.
After the meeting, it was a disappointed Luis Enrique who presented himself at a press conference. “It’s a joke in bad taste, (…) the opponent did nothing”lamented the Spanish coach, who described this defeat « d’inexplicable »comparing it to the matches played against Girona (1-0) and PSV Eindhoven (1-1) at the Parc des Princes. During these three meetings, PSG multiplied the opportunities, dominated their opponent, but faltered enormously in the finish.
The Parisian team has made inefficiency a bad refrain in the European Cup this season. Against Atlético, she got more than two expected goals (2.22 xG) – which measures the number of goals a team should have scored in a match, depending on the dangerousness of the shots attempted – but they underperformed again. “We play well, we create chances, we progress but not efficiently”lamented Marquinhos, who had a very sad 200e as captain of PSG.
PSG overshadowed by other French clubs
To score its three small goals in the European Cup this season, Paris has always counted on opposing errors. Against the Colchoneros, Warren Zaire-Emery took advantage of Clément Lenglet’s procrastination and Ousmane Dembélé’s serve before finishing with a subtle dive (14th). But four minutes later, “in a moment of distraction”as Vitinha described it, PSG conceded the equalizer through Nahuel Molina (18th). Everything had to be done again, which is no easy task for Paris this season in C1.
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