Ikoné’s solitary goal brought down the giant at the Parc des Princes.
Scandal at the Parc des Princes in a match between the two capital city neighbors. Paris Saint=Germain, European champions and current holders of the French Cup, fell at home to Paris FC in a game where Luis Enrique’s team took the lead in the first half and, when they found themselves losing, they no longer had time to turn the situation around. Credit to the courage of their smaller neighbors, with particular emphasis on the outstanding performance of goalkeeper Nkambadio, the star of the game. The first time Paris FC emerged from the shadow of the giant PSG resulted in a scandal that promises to be much talked about.
Paris is magic ,” reads one of the banners at the Parc des Princes, but tonight the magic definitely stayed in the locker room, and Luis Enrique’s team had to sweat, and even that wasn’t enough to secure one of the spots in the French Cup’s Round of 16. Just a week ago, in the league, the wealthy Parisian team had struggled to beat their courageous neighbors 2-1 , and tonight wasn’t much different. In fact, it was completely different.
Luis Enrique opted for an alternative starting eleven, leaving a veritable constellation of stars on the bench, including Nuno Mendes and João Neves, but also Doué and Dembélé. He only kept the “maestro” Vitinha in midfield and used this game to give Gonçalo Ramos more playing time in attack.
The game started intensely, with PSG having more possession and trying to establish themselves in the Paris FC midfield, who defended with a line of five that then spread out very well in attack, especially thanks to the speed that Gory brought to the team.
The first clear opportunity of the game came from Gory, with a shot from outside the area that forced Chevalier into a save, but shortly afterwards, Vitinha also tried his luck from mid-range and the ball went just wide of the post. However, it was the Paris FC forward who was in the spotlight until he was injured. Gory received treatment and even recovered, but after another sprint , he had to leave the field.
On PSG’s side, Vitinha was accumulating good moments in midfield, but there was little space for Gonçalo Ramos, Kvaratskhelia, and Barcola in the Paris FC penalty area. The home team’s best opportunity came in stoppage time, before halftime, with a shot from the Georgian player straight at Nkambadio. Those 45 minutes flew by, with the visitors deserving special mention, however small, for having neutralized their powerful opponent.
It smelled like a goal, but it went into the other net.
Paris FC made two more substitutions for the second half, but PSG returned with the same eleven, but calibrated with a higher pace than they had implemented in the first half. This change of pace forced Paris FC to retreat to maintain the same defensive consistency. The truth is that the visitors were beginning to show signs of fatigue and a goal was starting to look imminent at the Parc des Princes, with PSG now playing close to Nkambadio’s area.
Luis Enrique must have sensed the same threat and decided to go for the final blow, bringing on Nuno Mendes, Dembélé, and Doué all at once. Just when the final assault on Nkambadio’s goal seemed imminent, Paris FC scored, taking advantage of the opponent’s substitutions. In a quick transition, the Parc des Princes side reached Chevalier’s area in two stages, with Camara setting up Ikoné who scored. The striker didn’t celebrate out of respect for his former team, but a heavy silence fell over the stands.
There were still just over fifteen minutes left and PSG pressed hard in search of an equalizer, but Nkambadio, who had already stood out in the first half, again shone in the Paris FC goal, making impossible saves, most notably a powerful shot from Vitinha that looked destined for the net. Zaïre=Emery also had a clear opportunity after a spectacular pass from Nuno Mendes, but the ball hit the post, in a final stretch that sounded very desperate.
And it was no wonder, PSG crashed out of the title race they had won the previous season, and the celebration belonged to the modest Paris FC.