PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain produced a stunning second-half fightback as they recovered from two goals down to beat Manchester City 4-2 in a Champions League thriller on Wednesday, a result which leaves Pep Guardiola’s side still at risk of an early exit.
All the goals came in the second half on a wet night at the Parc des Princes, with Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland scoring to put City firmly in control.
However, Ousmane Dembele pulled one back and Bradley Barcola brought PSG level by the hour mark, before Joao Neves headed the French champions in front and Goncalo Ramos wrapped up the win at the death after a long VAR check.
Both of these powerful clubs came into their penultimate game in the league phase in Paris in trouble, with 24th-placed City occupying the last qualifying spot in the 36-team standings on eight points, and PSG one point behind them in 26th.
City knew a win here would probably guarantee them a spot in next month’s play-offs while landing a damaging blow to PSG, semifinalists last season.
Instead it is PSG who move to 10 points, a tally which may now be enough to progress, while Guardiola’s team drop out of the qualifying spots with just one game to come.
However, a win at home to Club Brugge next Wednesday should suffice as it would take them above the Belgian side in the standings.
This match saw City coach Guardiola, who led his side to Champions League glory in 2023, pit his wits against PSG’s Luis Enrique, his close friend and former team-mate at Barcelona.
The Premier League champions were seeking to continue a recent revival which had seen them win four and draw one of their last five matches after a run of one victory in 13 at the end of 2024.
City played with Matheus Nunes at right-back up against Bradley Barcola, the PSG left-winger who has found form again at the right time following the signing of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from Napoli to threaten his position in the team.
Ineligible for this game, the Georgian winger was in the stands along with City’s injured Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, as well as the likes of UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin and French NBA star Victor Wembanyama.
They saw PSG, sporting a brand new fourth kit, enjoy most of the possession and chances in the first half without being able to capitalize.
That has been a familiar failing for them in this season’s Champions League, in which they had already lost to Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich.
However, they were especially unlucky to see an Achraf Hakimi goal disallowed on the stroke of half-time for a tight offside decision against Nuno Mendes in the build-up.
Everything changed after the restart, though, as PSG sent on Dembele, and City made a double substitution including the introduction of Grealish for Savinho on the left wing.
Within five minutes Grealish had scored, lashing in after a Bernardo Silva shot had been parried by Gianluigi Donnarumma.
And the stadium was silenced as the visitors — who had won four of their last five meetings with PSG — scored again.
Nunes drove forward and found Grealish, whose cutback was diverted by the hapless Neves into the path of Haaland, leaving the Norwegian with a tap-in for his 23rd goal this season.
PSG were stunned, but their response was stunning, especially for a team that has struggled so badly to score goals in the competition this season.
They got one back on 56 minutes, Barcola powering forward and setting up Dembele to sweep a shot past Ederson.
The equalizer arrived shortly after and this time Barcola was the scorer, turning in the rebound after Desire Doue’s shot hit the bar.
All the momentum was with the home side, and Dembele struck the bar before they went ahead on 78 minutes, the diminutive Neves finding himself completely free of any defender to head in Vitinha’s free-kick at the back post.
The scoring was wrapped up in injury time when substitute Ramos netted with the last kick of the game, the celebrations being put on hold until a lengthy VAR check was completed.