A dominant Paris Saint-Germain won against Borussia Dortmund 2-0 on Tuesday evening at the Parc des Princes, and took the lead in the difficult Group F thanks to a draw between AC Milan and Newcastle. Announced in the “group of death”, PSG did not tremble by taking three of the most theoretically affordable points of the group stage, at home against a team a notch below (7th in the Bundesliga) of its level of last season (2ᵉ).
Luis Enrique, who arrived in the summer, did well not to panic after the defeat on Friday at the Parc against a good OGC Nice: his offensive playing principles are starting to be seen on the pitch, and his team is getting back into a positive dynamic before receiving Marseille on Sunday. Even if he will continue to have pressure in Ligue 1, where he only ranks fifth. On Tuesday, PSG relegated Borussia Dortmund, who usually like to control the ball, to their own half from the start of the match.
However, success only took shape after the break. Mbappé, who missed a lot on Tuesday, transformed with a low strike (49th) the penalty obtained for a handball from Süle, after a lightning raid and a cross from Dembélé. The defector from FC Barcelona is one of the Parisian satisfactions of the evening: he entered Dortmund’s left flank like butter. Less than ten minutes later, Hakimi doubled the lead with an outside right after a hook and a precise one-two with Vitinha in the opposing area.
Medium Kolo Muani
Paris then retreated a little. Despite Dortmund’s offensive inadequacies in the absence of Haller, on the bench, and Sabitzer injured from the 20th minute, the team conceded a few dangerous situations, including a post found by Bynoe-Gittens (80th). In the first half, however, the Parisians had reason to be frustrated, not knowing how to make the difference in the last 30 meters. Their attacking trio of the French team, made up of Mbappé, Dembélé and Kolo Muani, struggled to combine for their first association, until the second half.
The former Frankfurter Kolo Muani, in particular, missed his first start: poorly adjusted passes, ball lost while passing, failure to catch at point blank range an excellent low cross from Dembélé (14th), him again. Luis Enrique has obviously not yet found the formula for the leading striker, whether Kolo Muani or Gonçalo Ramos, to be easily hit by wingers and midfielders. In the middle, Ugarte did not seem to have fully recovered from a blow received in training.
The Portuguese has fully confirmed, for the space of one match in any case, the hopes placed in him by Parisian recruiters in the summer of 2022. To his credit, a shot on the post, an assist and many recoveries. Only a lost ball in midfield could have been costly. In the stands, the Auteuil corner made a point of covering the chants of the famous Borussia supporters, who will be able to make up for it by creating the famous yellow wall at the match at Signal Iduna Park.