BARCELONA 1-4 PSG
27′ rig. Messi (B), 32′, 64′ e 85′ Mbappé (P), 70′ Kean (P)
BARCELONA (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Dest (71 ‘Mingueza), Piqué (79’ Puig), Lenglet, Jordi Alba; De Jong, Busquets (79 ‘Pjanic), Pedri (79’ Trincão); Dembélé, Messi, Griezmann (85 ‘Braithwaite). All. Koeman
PSG (4-3-3): Navas; Florenzi (89 ‘Kehrer), Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Kurzawa; Gueye (46 ‘Herrera), Paredes, Verratti (73’ Draxler); Kean (85 ‘Danilo), Icardi, Mbappé. All. Pochettino
Ammonites: Gueye (P)
Mbappé phenomenon. In the house of Leo Messi, the former child prodigy of the balloon has officially become, quite simply, prodigy. Prodigious. Spectacular. Dominant. Three goals at the Camp Nou in the knockout stage had never been scored by anyone. And there was only one other player in the history of the Champions League, twenty-four years ago, his name was Andriy Shevchenko. And not only that: 111 goals with the PSG shirt, which at just 22 years old mean third place all time in the entire history of the club’s scorers, and tenth goal for him in the knockout phase (only two French have been able to score better, Henry and Benzema). But above all what seemed to all intents and purposes a handover. Messi scores, but the brightest star is the Kylian phenomenon. Spearhead of a Psg without Neymar but choral. A wonderful assist from Verratti, Florenzi puts his hand on 2-1. Kean plays very well and scores. Watch out for the return, already in 2017 the PSG had made four to the Catalans only to succumb in the famous 6-1 of the return, but it was another Barça. Today’s one, on the other hand, seems to be at the end of a cycle.
The match
Official formations. Pochettino chooses 433: two great absentees for him, above all Neymar, but also Di Maria. Play then Icardi in front, with Kean and Mbappé close to the former Inter. Verratti needle of the balance: inside midfield in 433 or even higher, attacking midfielder in a 4231. And there is another Italian in the field: Florenzi on the right out. At home Barcelona the great return is that of the flag Pique, absent since the end of November. Three months. Trident against the French with two Frenchmen: Griezmann and Dembélé, together with the inevitable Leo Messi, also at the center of the market rumors, divided between the Blaugrana colors always worn and, perhaps, those of the PSG for the future. Koeman sends Pjanic to the bench (only five as a starter this year in La Liga but six out of six from 1 ‘in the Champions League group). De Jong, Busquets and the starlet Pedri are the midfielders.
Play. Ready and go it is immediately a show (surprised?), Two goals and many opportunities. Let’s start with the key moments: Messi unlocks on a penalty but Mbappé recovers him immediately with the 1-1 in the area on Verratti’s genius (delightful assist from outside). In between, much more: Icardi wasted only against Ter Stegen in the 19 ‘, Dembélé did the same against Navas sixty seconds after Lionel’s twentieth signing of the season. 1-1 still hands in hair for the fans on the couch: Ter Stegen is miraculous on Kurzawa diagonally (35 ‘), and Griezmann touches the post in photocopy action on the opposite front (38’). Over? Not at all: in the final half of time Icardi tries to make the Drogba attempting the head advance on the near post from a corner: ball out (44 ‘). And interval.
In the second half, a change immediately: out Gueye, booked and at risk of redness several times in the first half. Enter Herrera. Kean (his game is excellent) tries immediately, then cold sweats at Psg when Messi approaches a free kick from the edge (barrier). And then? obviously Mbappé. At 64 ‘Florenzi escape on the right, ball in the middle, deviation and again a goal for him. And so Kean: a double blow from a technical knockout in the 70th minute that knocks out the Catalans. Koeman tries to run for cover with a triple change: Puig, Pjanic and Trincão for Piqué, Busquets and Pedri. Griezmann comes close to scoring but only on a Navas error that threatens to combine it big on a postponement. So also Braithwaite and Danilo on the pitch, but the phenomenon with the number 7 on the shirt still lights up. Counterattack led by Draxler, assist for him and triplet. Had the audience been there, it would have been a standing ovation.
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