Paris Saint-Germain almost suffered a European hangover as they needed a 91st-minute strike from Kylian Mbappe to seal a 2-1 win over Brest on Saturday.
Christophe Gaultier’s side were below par and Carlos Soler’s opener was canceled out by Franck Honorat just before half-time, and they fought incredibly hard in the second half before Mbappe popped in to save the day. did up
Embappé saw breast stopper Marco Bizot tip the post excellently before Soler’s mighty strike from the edge of the box.
Obviously, the visitors quickly extended their dominance and began to dominate proceedings, although Brest defended stoutly and even scared a few halves on the counter reminding PSG that no walkovers here. Should not happen.
Jean-Kevin Duvernay had a brief glimpse of goal from a corner but his powerful header was sent into the arms of Gianluigi Donnarumma before the Brest left-back controversially saw off a penalty appeal.
PSG calmed the nerves just before half-time. Bijot crossed uncomfortably from Mbappe’s striking range, but the rebound fell right at Soler’s feet and the Spaniard crashed the ball into the net from under the bar.
However, both sides went into the break tied as Honorat smashed home on counter. The winger played over the top and held off two defenders before firing into the top corner to earn his entitled equaliser.
At the start of the second half, Brest were once again energetic, although they got away with some lethargic defending, leaving Lionel Messi wide open, but the Argentine could not keep his effort on goal.
Embappé found an inch of space in the box but, with Bizot on the move, the Frenchman fired his effort wide.
There was some drama late on as Mbappe aimed a forceful kick at Haris Belkebla – nothing dangerous but certainly petulant – but VAR somehow didn’t take an interest and let the referee’s yellow card decision stand.
Moments later, Embappé stabbed Brest in the heart. With 91 minutes on the clock, Messi’s long ball found the Frenchman, who outpaced Bizot and tapped into an empty net to snatch all three points.
GK: Marco Bizot (6); RB: Noah Fadiga (7); CB: Achraf Dari (6); CB: Lillian Brassier (6); LB: Jean-Kevin Duvernay (7); DM: Pierre Lees-Melou (7); RM: Frank Honorat (7); cm: Hugo Magnetti (6); cm: Haris Belkebla (7); lm: Roman del Castillo (7); scheduled tribe: Steve Mooney (6)
substitute: Jérémy Le Douron (5), Felix Lemarechal (6), Christophe Herrelle (5)
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma – 5/10 – Another game without a clean sheet for Donnarumma. Time to start asking questions.
RB: Timothy Pembele – 4/10 – Played very advanced for someone with his limited pace. Couldn’t handle the onrate for the equalizer and was targeted the whole game.
CB: Danilo Pereira – 6/10 – Fairly comfortable but didn’t get much help from people around me.
CB: Sergio Ramos – 5/10 – His limited athleticism was made clear here. Could not keep up with the Hon.
LB: Nuno Mendes – 7/10 – After a difficult first half, Mendes carried the show after the break. Arguably the most dangerous attacker and Gaultier responded late on by pushing him even further.
Chief Minister: Marco Verratti – 5/10 – Nothing could keep up with the midfield of Brest. Seemed a bit aloof at times.
Chief Minister: Warren Zaire-Emery – 6/10 – His energy sets him apart from the rest of PSG’s midfield, although the youngster doesn’t offer much.
CM: Fabian Ruiz – 4/10 – Another poor performance for Fabian. Doesn’t match up with this team at all.
AM: Carlos Soler – 7/10 – Stand-out in PSG’s midfield. Brimming with genuine energy and well deserved of his goal.
ST: Lionel Messi – 8/10 – Lots of dangerous moments and great assists for Embappé’s winner.
ST: Kylian Mbappé – 6/10 – Somehow avoided a red card late on for a clear kick on Belkebla, after which he made up the difference with a cool finish.
substitute player
Vitinha (75′ for Fabian) – 5/10
Juan Bernat (75′ for Pembele) – 6/10
Hugo Ekitike (80′ for Solar) – 5/10
Renato Sanchez (89′ for Zaire-Emery) – N/A
Manager
Christophe Gaultier – 4/10 – A zoom in from an unsuspecting camera operator appeared to show a notebook with very few tactical notes. Regardless of whether that screenshot was accurate or not, it certainly looked like it was telling the truth. The current damage escapes further criticism due to the impact of the crisis.