Paris St Germain 1, Manchester City 2 (Champions League Semi Final 1st Leg)
Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez scored second half goals to overhaul an early Paris St Germain lead to record a famous away win for Manchester City.
Embed from Getty ImagesCity overcame a set piece goal by Paris St Germain captain Marquinhos to win in Paris to leave them in control of their Champions League semi final tie.
De Bruyne and Mahrez scored in the second half to reward a more adventurous approach against a brittle home defence which left City’s hosts reeling.
The Parisians soon lost their heads with ex-Everton midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye sent off late on for a bad foul on Ilkay Gundogan after frustrations boiled over on a famous night for Manchester City who became the first English side to win six consecutive European Cup/Champions League matches in a single season since Leeds United in the 1969/70 campaign.
Such was City’s control of the game that they restricted Kylian Mbappe to no shots on goal in a Champions League game for the first time while Neymar was quiet after the break as City pressed higher and finished with 59% possession against their hosts.
By contrast Phil Foden might not have scored tonight but he had a handful of chances to put himself more including a wonder-run past three defenders and shooting past two more right at the end which deserved a better finish.
City boss Pep Guardiola praised the change in City’s mentality to see them through the early setback and win through but he warned that the tie was far from over.
He said: “We started really well, conceded a goal and felt the pressure.
“We should have defended their goal better, we didn’t have the good possession in the right positions but sometimes it’s normal, this club doesn’t have much experience in these [Champions League] positions.
“When we are ourselves anything can happen. We found the goals and could have scored another one.
“But it’s only half way – we need 90 more minutes to beat them but it’s PSG and anything can happen.
“In Dortmund we conceded a goal and we came back and tonight we did the same.
“We can’t play a different way but the last ten minutes of the first half was good, the second half was excellent.
“Now we have a hard job to do in six days“
Pep Guardiola made four changes to the side that beat Spurs in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday, and he went with a strong side that didn’t include any strikers – with Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus starting on the bench.
In came Ederson, John Stones, Rodri, and Bernardo Silva while Zack Steffen, Aymeric Laporte, Fernandinho, and Raheem Sterling dropped to the bench as Guardiola named the same side that beat Borussia Dortmund in the quarter final.
And Guardiola, who was contesting his eighth Champions League Semi Final, level with Jose Mourinho, was clearly not in the mood for a friendly encounter – the personnel may have been as expected but the first half tactics were conservative from City as both full backs looked reticent to leave the defence exposed, leaving the Blues short of the overloads they like to have in attack.
City were second best in an intense first half in which Marquinhos scored a flicked header from a world class Angel Di Maria corner as Paris St Germain still found enough space to exploit City.
City were giving away too many corners and both Mbappe and Neymar were in a dangerous mood, with the latter testing Ederson who will have been fuming as shots from Alessandro Florenzi, Angel di Maria and Mitchel Bakker also saw shots blocked.
The home goal came after just 15 minutes – Marquinhos evaded Ilkay Gundogan and converted Di Maria’s swooping flat corner, delivered with pace, with a glancing header in past Ederson and inside the back post after just 15 minutes.
It was just the fourth goal that City had conceded in this season’s competition and from a defender who could rise to the occasion having scored in the quarter final and semi finals of the Champions League for the second season in succession.
City also had isolated chances – with Bernardo Silva’s shot forcing Keylor Navas to save while he palmed away Kevin De Bruyne’s free kick and saw Mitchel Bakker nick the ball away before Silva could reach it, the Dutch defender also saw his shot at the other end blocked by John Stones.
Phil Foden had a golden chance to level things up shortly before the end of the first half when he took a half touch too many and sent a great chance into the arms of Navas after Bernardo Silva had squared the ball to him.
Manchester City cast the shackles off in the second half and earn famous away victory over Paris St Germain
City doubled down on the high pressing after the break but could not secure a clear chance on goal despite disrupting the home side and stretching them.
But Mbappe reminded City he was still a danger, turning City’s defence inside out and put in a cross which Walker had to put out for a corner and Ederson had to come out of his area to clear a long ball for the youngster to run onto.
De Bruyne tried an overhead spectacular which flew over the net before City made the first change of the evening , replacing Cancelo – who was on a booking – with Oleksandr Zinchenko after 61 minutes.
Kyle Walker steamed out of defence to offer the option and then cross the ball which was cleared by Marquinhos behind with nobody near him.
And from the corner De Bruyne found the equaliser in the 64th minute to snatch the away goal from 30 yards out with a drifted ball in which bounced inside the back post for his 9th goal of the season and City’s first ever goal in a Champions League semi final.
City had risked more in pressing high and Paredes fouled Foden in prime position 25 yards from goal to the left of the centre in front of the area and in the perfect position for De Bruyne.
But it was Mahrez who hit a low free kick through a tiny gap that formed in the stunned Paris defence and past a static Navas after 71 minutes for his 12th goal of the season.
The home side seemed to lose their heads after that, having to commit more to attack but also taking out their frustrations on the controlled City performance.
Foden saw a glancing header go into the arms of Navas after Mahrez found him from the right with spaces opening up.
Such was the frustration by Paris that Gundogan was scythed down by a shocking Idrissa Gana Gueye tackle after 77 minutes – a rake down his achilles that referee Felix Brych didn’t need to refer to VAR – the red card was out immediately to send off the ex-Everton man after City had put on some one touch passing to create more openings.
Danilo replaced Di Maria for the last 10 minutes as Paris had to prevent City from adding to their tally while former Manchester United man Ander Herrera replaced Leandro Paredes a couple of minutes later.
Rodri’s ball across the area a couple of minutes later was begging to be put away but nobody gambled while Mahrez struck wide of the near post after cutting inside as City looked for a killer third goal.
And Foden danced past a gaggle of static Paris players but his shot was one again too close to Navas for that would have been a statement goal for the youngster right at the end of a superb result for City.
GOALS – Paris St Germain 1, Manchester City 2 (Champions League Semi Final 1st Leg)
Paris St Germain 1, Man City 0: 15. Marquinhos rose to meet a low sweeping cross from Angel Di Maria to glance it in past Ederson and into the back of the far post.
Paris St Germain 1, Man City 1: 64. Kevin De Bruyne took the ball from Oleksandr Zinchenko and floated in a teasing ball from 30 yards out which evaded everyone and curled inside the back post with a bounce that deceived Keylor Navas.
Paris St Germain 1, Man City 2: 71. Phil Foden was fouled 25 yards from goal and Riyad Mahrez struck a low free kick through the wall which parted as they jumped and past an unsighted Keylor Navas.
MATCH STATS – Paris St Germain 1, Manchester City 2 (Champions League Semi Final 1st Leg)
Paris St Germain: Navas, Florenzi, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Bakker, Paredes (Herrera 83), Gueye, Verratti, Di Maria (Danilo 80), Mbappe, Neymar
Paris St Germain subs not used: Rico, Kehrer, Icardi, Rafinha, Kean, Sarabia, Kurzawa, Diallo, Draxler, Dagba
Bookings: Paredes 70 (foul on Phil Foden); Neymar 74 (foul on Ruben Dias)
Sent Off: Gueye 77 (serious foul play on Ilkay Gundogan)
Goal: Marquinhos 15
Man City: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Dias, Cancelo (Zinchenko 61), Rodri, Gundogan, Mahrez, De Bruyne, Foden, Bernardo Silva
Man City subs not used: Steffen, Trafford, Ake, Sterling, Jesus, Aguero, Laporte, Torres, Mendy, Fernandinho, Garcia
Booking: Cancelo 31 (foul on Kylian Mbappe); De Bruyne 86 (foul on Danilo)
Goals: De Bruyne 64, Mahrez 71
Referee: Dr Felix Brych