Paris Saint-Germain could not emulate their emphatic performance against Pays de Cassel (7-0 victory, Kylian Mbappé scored five) in the previous round of the Coupe de France, also known as the French Cup, and bowed out from the competition in the Round of 16. They travelled to Marseille yesterday but ended up as the losing side of the fixture, with the home side beating the current French Ligue 1 leader with a 2-1 score line. A goal in each half was sufficient for the team in white to overcome Sergio Ramos’ equaliser late in the first half, and the defeat meant Christophe Galtier’s men are out of the competition at the same stage for two consecutive seasons.
Mbappé’s Absence Felt
PSG continued to be without Kylian Mbappé, who is currently sidelined for three weeks due to a thigh injury. The 2022 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot winner had been influential to Paris this season, having already scored 25 goals in 26 appearances in all competitions for his club and was the most important figure for the France national team that finished second in the recent World Cup; He was certainly missed by PSG’s players and fans, especially after this defeat to Marseille.
Both teams traded blows in the first half, but it was Les Phocéens which drew first blood after 30 minutes. The goal came when former Spain and Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos fouled Cengiz Ünder in the penalty box when the defender was fighting back to chase the winger, prompting the referee to award a spot kick to the home side. 34-year-old Alexis Sánchez took the ball to the spot and fired in Marseille’s first goal of the evening. Ramos then make up for his mistake earlier by scoring a last-minute corner in the first 45 minutes, courtesy of a delivery by Brazil forward Neymar.
Igor Tudor’s men were not going to let Paris Saint-Germain to come back in the game and Chancel Mbemba Mangulu managed to beat opposing defenders to cut it into the penalty box in the 57th minute. His pass fell before Sanchez but the Chilean could not get his brace as his strike was blocked. The ball landed perfectly for Ukrainian forward Ruslan Malinovskyi to unleash a wonder goal just outside the box, with his shot went over the mighty Gianluigi Donnarumma. The 2-1 score line stayed till the final whistle, with the current second-place team in French Ligue 1 overcame the leader of the said list.
Le missile de Ruslan Malinovskyi pour délivrer tout un peuple. 💙🤍🚀
🎥 @OM_Officiel pic.twitter.com/ugVIT6fASe
— Actu Foot (@ActuFoot_) February 8, 2023
It’s All About Champions League Now
The victory must have been sweet for Marseille as it currently trails 8 points off Messi’s Paris Saint-Germain in French Ligue 1 table, and the team will be eyeing for a domestic cup glory now that it has eliminated its biggest threat in the competition. As for the Neymar-led side, they will only have the UEFA Champions League left as its cup endeavour, but it will be not be easy as the team is set to face 32-time German champion Bayern Munich in the Round of 16 on Valentine’s Day; It is worth noting that the French Ligue 1 defending champion had never won the competition before, having captured European glories namely UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup and UEFA Intertoto Cup only in the past.
PSG’s 28-year-old Marquinhos was an unhappy man after the defeat in the Coupe de France. He stated that “We missed things, it’s time to shut our mouths. We know we have to improve a lot if we want to do good things this season. A title that is going away, it hurts. We’re disgusted. We knew they would do a lot of pressing. We didn’t manage to pass their lines any faster. We made a few mistakes that cost us dearly. We know what we need to improve. It’s a defeat that hurts because it’s a cup match against our great rival. We wanted to return to Paris with victory and qualification. We have to do better, continue to work and go forward.” The head coach of PSG also echoed his captain’s sentiments during the post-match conference, calling his team to stay focused and keep working.
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