Mandatory victory for PSG in Salzburg on this 6th day of the Champions League. It was with the anxiety of an early elimination that the Parisians went to Austria to face one of the worst teams in the competition, 32nd at kick-off with 1 victory and 4 defeats. Luis Enrique was under pressure this evening, especially since Ligue 1 has no longer kept up appearances for two games. In Munich, the Spaniard had chosen Safonov to everyone’s surprise, but it was Donnarumma who started this time in a team that was as classic as possible, or almost. Fabian Ruiz took Zaire-Emery’s place in the middle, and Ramos started up front alongside Barcola and Lee.
The difference in level between the two teams was felt from the first passes. Paris took control of the game and went it alone in this first quarter of an hour. After several alerts in his area (Barcola, Nunou Mendes), Schlager pushed back a first time on a powerful shot from Hakimi, followed by a tap on the head of Ramos (10th). He was still working on this attempt from Vitinha full axis (12th), while Lee had come close to hitting the target a moment earlier (11th). It was all going to be a matter of patience and success. At this moment of the match, we were not wondering if PSG would win but rather how many goals ahead of an opponent who had taken a scathing 4-0 against Brest.
Ramos holder and scorer, Gifted sharp entry
Discreet until then, Ramos missed an apparently unmissable opportunity in front of the goal line (24th). His next shot was blocked at the last minute (29th) but the third was the right one on this delivery from Hakimi facing the goal (0-1, 30th). PSG returned to the locker room with a slight lead, without being able to make the break since Barcola took the upper hand in his duel with Schlager but his ball ended up a hair’s breadth from the left post (38th). The Parisians still lacked finishing problems. This time all the same, the opponent seemed too weak to come back (only one shot at the break). Donnarumma spent the time watching her partners dominate the debates, without managing to take shelter… for the moment.
The Ile-de-France residents purred a little more in this second half despite a few brilliant shots which did not succeed (Lee 47th, Barcola 59th). A few bullet losses gave a semblance of a thrill. Opposite, Salzburg managed to reach the opposing 20 meters with great difficulty, even on the counterattack. However, Paris still only had one goal in advance. The solution came partly from the bench. Entering in place of Ramos, Doué, launched by Barcola in the area on the left side, crossed back for Nuno Mendes, who finished strongly (0-2, 72nd). This time, PSG held the victory, with a little more margin since Doué concluded a nice one-two between Hakimi and Lee (0-3, 85th), while Schlager repelled the 4-0 ball from Barcola (87th) . With this welcome success, the capital club is relaunching and moves back to 24th place in the standings, the last jump-off seat. Next meeting in the Champions League in 2025 against Manchester City.
