PSG 2-0 Liverpool: Doue 11, Kvaratskhelia 65
This is the new Liverpool, and perhaps you liked the old one better. Paris Saint-Germain flexed their muscles in Paris, punishing Arne Slot’s men and leaving them beaten and half-mangled, but still alive.
The European champions are heating up just in time, at the business end of the Champions League, the defining rounds, the peak-football season, and they ran all over Liverpool, with the 2-0 scoreline not coming close to reflecting the nature of the domination.
Desire Doue opened the scoring in the 11th minute with a deflected shot that looped over Liverpool goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, and in the second half Khvicha Kvaratskhelia doubled the lead, rounding Mamardashvili and passing into the net after a fine through ball from Joao Neves.
So Slot’s side have hope. In theory they can overturn the deficit by winning by at least two goals in the second leg at Anfield next week, in front of their home fans. In practice it is difficult to see this team, who had only 30 per cent of the ball and did not register a single shot on target across the 90 minutes, beat the European champions by a two-goal margin or more just a week later.
Slot responded to Saturday’s 4-0 FA Cup thrashing at Manchester City by dropping Mohamed Salah to the bench and deploying a three-man central defence for the first time in his tenure. There was little joy to be had from it.
Liverpool will be grateful for poor finishing from last year’s Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who missed a slew chances including one where he completely blazed over just in front of goal in the 53rd minute, after a cut-back from Nuno Mendes. Dembele also struck the outside of the post in the later stages.
The list could go on. Mendes himself missed a golden opportunity from six yards, and Doue was denied by Mamardashvili from close range before half-time. Warren Zaire-Emery should have scored but dithered and allowed Ibrahima Konate to put in a weak tackle. He crumpled and the referee awarded PSG a penalty, but after a review he decided that Konate’s initial contact had been too soft and he had then got the ball afterwards. On another occasion the penalty could have stood.
Later in the game Liverpool somehow escaped yet again after Konate put out his arm to blatantly shove Dembele on the back as he tried to square the ball across goal. The referee waved it away and Liverpool had reprieve. The entire game itself was a prerogative of mercy, a stay of execution. To Anfield then.
