PARIS: Neymar notched his 10th goal of the young season but a lethargic Paris Saint-Germain needed a second-half Gianluigi Donnarumma penalty save to secure a 1-0 win over Brest in Ligue 1 on Saturday.
The result takes PSG back to the top of the table and maintains their unbeaten start to the season under new coach Christophe Galtier.
PSG are two points clear of Lens, who won 1-0 against Troyes on Friday, but Marseille can move level with the champions if they win at home to Lille later on Saturday.
Despite the result, this was PSG’s least convincing performance of the season so far, coming against a Brest side who just two weeks ago lost 7-0 at home to Montpellier.
Paris coach Christophe Galtier may reflect that he should have made more changes to his starting line-up, with this match coming in between their 2-1 midweek Champions League win over Juventus and a long trip to Israel to play Maccabi Haifa this Wednesday.
Nuno Mendes and captain Marquinhos were the only PSG players who started against Juventus to be rested, with Juan Bernat and Danilo Pereira coming in.
Galtier resisted the temptation to rest any of his superstar front three, telling broadcaster Amazon Prime that he had thought about leaving out Lionel Messi but realized that the Argentine “doesn’t need a breather.”
Summer signings Nordi Mukiele and Carlos Soler therefore spent the afternoon on the bench, while Spanish international Fabian Ruiz came on for his debut as a second-half substitute.
There was a lucky escape for Brest in the first half as defender Christophe Herelle was sent off for bringing down Neymar as the Brazilian advanced on goal.
VAR confirmed that Neymar was fractionally offside when Messi played the pass, and Herelle was allowed to stay on the field.
However, the home side scored on the half-hour with Messi again picking out Neymar, who controlled before sending a shot across goalkeeper Marco Bizot and into the far corner.
It was his eighth goal in seven league games this season. He also scored twice in the campaign-opening Champions Trophy against Nantes.
It was also a seventh assist for Messi, who has turned into a more reliable maker of goals than goal-scorer since leaving Barcelona.
The Argentine did hit the post from a Kylian Mbappe assist early in the second half, while the latter had a goal disallowed for offside just before the break.
Ultimately PSG were grateful to Donnarumma. The Italian dived to his left 20 minutes from time to keep out Islam Slimani’s penalty, awarded following a clumsy foul by Presnel Kimpembe on Noah Fadiga.
Neymar scores, Donnarumma saves penalty in PSG win
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Neymar scores, Donnarumma saves penalty in PSG win
- The result takes PSG back to the top of the table and maintains their unbeaten start to the season
- Marseille can move level with the champions if they win at home to Lille later on Saturday
Dortmund’s new CEO defends sponsorship deal with arms manufacturer Rheinmetall
- Cramer said “it’s maybe a part of life that we do not need to agree 100 percent to everything the club are doing”
- At the 2024 AGM, a majority of members present voted against further cooperation with Rheinmetall
BERLIN: German soccer club Borussia Dortmund’s new chief executive has defended their contentious sponsorship agreement with Rheinmetall, the country’s largest arms manufacturer.
Carsten Cramer, who took over from outgoing Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke last month, said Thursday he was 100 percent committed to the three-year deal announced by the club in May 2024, and that he was “convinced it was the right decision” despite many Dortmund fans making their opposition to it clear.
“I do accept the criticism,” Cramer said. “It’s maybe a part of life that we do not need to agree 100 percent to everything the club are doing. But in certain times it is necessary to take responsibility, and in these dangerous times where the safety and security of our country is not protected by diplomatic relationships and political relationships, I think it is a clear commitment of a club like Dortmund that we have to invest in defense.”
Rheinmetall last month announced record figures for the first nine months of 2025, with sales up 20 percent to 7.5 billion euros ($8.8 billion), while its backlog in orders reached 64 billion euros ($75 billion). It announced record sales of weapon systems, ammunition and protection systems driven by wars in Ukraine and elsewhere.
“We have to start and run a discussion in our country how to defend our country and Dortmund are always taking responsibility,” Cramer said. “We are always saying we are more than just a football club.”
Dortmund present Rheinmetall on their website as a “champion partner” and they display the company’s banner on advertising hoardings during games.
The agreement has caused friction among supporters to varying degrees with some Dortmund fans even going so far as to renounce their support. There were boos for Watzke at the club’s AGM last month, when he was appointed club president with 59 percent of the vote though he might have expected more. Watzke played a significant role in steering the club through a financial crisis in 2005.
At the 2024 AGM, a majority of members present voted against further cooperation with Rheinmetall.
That came after the team’s first game of the 2024-25 season was marked by fan protests against the sponsorship deal.
“Five years ago, I never expected that we would work together with a defense company. But now democracy, the system, the defense structure of our territories (is) under pressure, and I think we have to open the eyes of the people that we are not able to defend our country, our system, just by hoping that the Americans will care for us,” Cramer said.
“If a club like us are not inviting (people) to discuss something like this, who should do it?”
