PARIS: A wonder goal from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia upstaged a brilliant curling shot from teammate Désiré Doué as Paris Saint-Germain beat Aston Villa 3-1 in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday.
After Morgan Rogers gave Villa the lead in the 35th minute, the 19-year-old Doué drew PSG level four minutes later with the 12th goal of his breakthrough season.
Kvaratskhelia put PSG in front four minutes after the break and left back Nuno Mendes added a third goal in stoppage time with a fine finish of his own.
“I think the result reflects the difference between us and them,” said PSG coach Luis Enrique, whose side has greater firepower and showed more of a threat going forward. “Our objective is to keep the ball and be aggressive in attack.”
Kvaratskhelia’s was the goal of the night.
He sprinted down the left from just over the halfway line and then mesmerized Villa’s defense in a blizzard of quick feet and superb balance.
Advancing at pace with the ball seemingly glued to his right foot, he then wrong-footed defender Axel Disasi with a sudden change of direction, before rolling the ball onto his left foot in one smooth motion and blasting an unstoppable shot over the head of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
“For a coach like me it’s so great to have a player like him, with his mentality. He scored a brilliant goal,” Luis Enrique said about Kvaratskhelia. “We tried to sign him last summer and it didn’t work out. We signed him (in January) when we didn’t really expect to. He’s got everything to be part of our project.”
The return leg is next Tuesday.
In Wednesday’s other game, five-time champion Barcelona crushed Borussia Dortmund 4-0 with veteran striker Robert Lewandowski scoring twice either side of goals from Raphinha and Lamine Yamal.
Kvaratskhelia belongs in such elite company.
His goal was exactly the kind of effort that earned the flying Georgia winger the nickname ” Kvaradona ” when he was playing for Napoli, in reference to soccer maestro Diego Maradona — the Italian club’s greatest ever player — and prompted PSG coach Luis Enrique to spend 70 million euros (then $72 million) on him in the winter transfer window.
Shortly after Kvaratskhelia’s goal, Martinez made a great save low to his right against Achraf Hakimi’s powerful shot as PSG poured forward looking for a third goal.
Villa was at this stage of the competition for the first time since 1983 and dealt well with early pressure before taking the lead with a well-worked goal.
Bustling captain John McGinn won the ball in midfield and advanced before picking out Marcus Rashford, the forward who scored a stoppage-time winner here for Manchester United six years ago. Rashford fed Youri Tielemans overlapping down the left and he pinged a cross to the back post where Rogers was left unmarked to tap in.
The lead was brief as Doué picked up the ball on the left of the penalty area, skipped past two players and curled the ball into the top right corner.
“He’s got everything he needs to become a great player,” Luis Enrique said. “He really doesn’t need much space to dribble.”
Martinez played long balls early on to test PSG’s defense, but he was soon called into action with a flying save from Dembélé’s angled strike in the eighth minute.
He couldn’t do much about the goals that beat him, however, with Nuno Mendes showing a forward’s touch when he latched onto Dembélé’s pass, cut inside a defender and deftly guided the ball in.
“We’ve watched their last few games and know how deadly and sharp they’ve been,” Rogers said. “They’ve put the world on notice now.”
But Villa coach Unai Emery believes he can still eliminate the club he coached from 2016-18.
“I believe we will win next week,” he said. “Villa Park is our home.”
Kvaratskhelia’s wonder goal helps PSG beat Aston Villa 3-1 in 1st leg of CL quarterfinals
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Kvaratskhelia’s wonder goal helps PSG beat Aston Villa 3-1 in 1st leg of CL quarterfinals
- Kvaratskhelia put PSG in front four minutes after the break and left back Nuno Mendes added a third goal in stoppage time with a fine finish of his own
Qualifier Maria completes fairytale run to Queen’s title
- The 37-year-old’s victory secured the fourth singles title of her career
LONDON: Tatjana Maria completed her fairytale run at Queen’s Club as the German qualifier beat American Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 6-4 in Sunday’s final to become the oldest winner of a WTA 500 event.
The 37-year-old’s victory secured the fourth singles title of her career, and her first since 2023 on the clay in Bogota.
World number 86 Maria is the first German to win a WTA 500 title since Angelique Kerber in 2018 in Sydney.
In the first women’s tournament at Queen’s since 1973, Maria is the event’s first female champion since Russia’s Olga Morozova 52 years ago.
When Morozova won in west London, the prize money was just £1,000 ($1,353).
Maria banked a cheque for £120,000 and more importantly earned a huge confidence boost ahead of Wimbledon, which starts on June 30.
The mother of two arrived at Queen’s on a nine-match losing streak and had to survive two rounds of qualifying matches to reach the main draw.
Deploying her slice-heavy style to devastating effect, she stunned sixth seed Karolina Muchova, fourth seed Elena Rybakina and reigning Australian Open champion Madison Keys en route to the final.
Maria, who has taken two maternity breaks from the WTA Tour, has never been past the second round of any Grand Slam except Wimbledon, where she reached the semifinals in 2022.
But once again she proved a formidable force on grass, brushing aside Anisimova to secure her second title on the surface as her husband and young daughters Charlotte and Cecilia watched from courtside.
“A dream come true. I came here I was never thinking I could hold the trophy at the end,” Maria said.
“When we arrived my little girl said: ‘Wow that’s a nice trophy, so big’ and I said: ‘OK let’s go for it, I will try to win it’. And in the end I’ve won it, it’s incredible.
“Everything is possible if you believe in it. You go your way, doesn’t matter which it is but you have to keep going. I want to show this to my kids and hopefully they are proud. It’s amazing.”
Asked if she planned to celebrate with her family, Maria said: “For sure. This doesn’t happen every week so we have to celebrate with something.
“I think the kids will probably want some crepes with Nutella!“
Anisimova has struggled to live up to her early success after reaching the French Open semifinals aged 17 in 2019.
She took an eight-month break from tennis and dropped out of the top 400 after suffering with depression bought on by the scrutiny and expectations that came with being a teen prodigy.
The 23-year-old returned last year and won the Qatar Open this February, reaching a career-high 15th in the rankings before underlining her renaissance by defeating Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen to reach her first grass-court final.
However, Maria was too savvy on grass for Anisimova, who said: “It’s incredible to see Tatjana playing at this level. To have her family here, it’s super special.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we see her in the Wimbledon final. She really had me running out there today.”
Merciless Bayern hit 10 against amateurs Auckland City at Club World Cup
Kingsley Coman, Michael Olize and Thomas Mueller all netted twice, while Sacha Boey was also on target for the German champions in the game in Group C, which also features Boca Juniors and Benfica.
Harry Kane started but didn’t find the target before being replaced just after the hour mark by Musiala, who netted his three goals in the space of 18 minutes toward the end.
It was a stroll in the park in the midday sun in Cincinnati for Vincent Kompany’s side, with France winger Coman scoring twice in the opening 21 minutes either side of goals by compatriots Boey and Olize.
Coman’s sixth-minute breakthrough goal was the first of the tournament following the 0-0 draw between Inter Miami and Al Ahly in Saturday’s opening game.
Mueller got the fifth and Olize’s second of the afternoon made it 6-0 in first-half stoppage time for the Bundesliga heavyweights.
Auckland City managed to stem the tide for much of the second half before Musiala came on and took center stage, his three goals including one from the penalty spot.
Mueller made it 10-0 in the 89th minute for a Bayern side who won the Club World Cup twice in its former seven-team guise, in 2013 and 2020.
They have recorded bigger victories in the past in the German Cup, but the 10-goal winning margin equals their best ever win in the Bundesliga, when they beat Borussia Dortmund 11-1 in 1971.
Bayern, who gave new signing Jonathan Tah a debut in central defense following his recent arrival from Bayer Leverkusen, play Boca in their next match in Miami on Friday.
Auckland City take on Benfica earlier the same day in Orlando.
Saudi Arabia complete final preparations ahead of Gold Cup opener against Haiti
- Saudi Arabia have been drawn in Group D of the regional tournament, where they will face the United States, Trinidad and Tobago, and Monday’s opponents Haiti
SAN DIEGO: Saudi Arabia’s national team have wrapped up their preparations ahead of their opening match against Haiti in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup on Monday.
Herve Renard’s side held their final training session on Sunday at the Performance Center in San Diego, ahead of Monday’s Group D clash at Snapdragon Stadium.
The session began with warm-up drills before moving into possession-based training and a half-pitch practice match. Players concluded with stretching exercises.
Midfielder Muhannad Al-Saad was absent from group training due to muscle discomfort in his thigh, team officials confirmed.
Saudi Arabia have been drawn in Group D of the regional tournament, where they will face the United States, Trinidad and Tobago, and Monday’s opponents Haiti.
Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami and Egypt’s Al Ahly battle to scoreless draw in Club World Cup opener
MIAMI GARDENS, Florida: Lionel Messi was denied on a long shot in extra time and Inter Miami and Egypt’s Al Ahly settled for a scoreless draw in the opening game of the Club World Cup on Saturday night.
Argentina’s eight-time Ballon d’Or winner kicked a long, curling shot from the right side that was tipped by diving goalkeeper Mohamed Elshenawy and brushed off the crossbar in the 96th minute front of a crowd of more than 60,000 at Hard Rock Stadium. Messi also shaved the post with a free kick in the 60th minute in the second half.
Miami had its own good fortune, surviving a first half onslaught by 12-time African champion Al Ahly, with goalkeeper Oscar Ustari saving a penalty from Trezeguet just before the break.
Key moment
Miami had to rely on veteran Argentine goalkeeper Ustari to keep the game level in the first half, with the 38-year-old pulling off a number of saves as Al Ahly dominated the chances. He produced a crucial double save just before halftime — blocking Trezeguet’s 43rd-minute penalty and then getting up quickly to deny the forward again on the rebound.
Takeaways
A draw leaves both teams with a battle to advance from Group A with tougher tests likely to come against Brazilian giant Palmeiras and Porto from Portugal. The top two advance to the round of 16.
Miami can be encouraged by its performance in the second half after being dominated in the first half. Inter Miami had the better chances after the break, with Messi’s free kick and curling long shot both hitting the woodwork.
What they said
“It was a good party for football. It’s a new competition and the chance to play teams we don’t play normally in our league, so it can be very good for us. You can prove what we can do.” – Javier Mascherano, Inter Miami coach.
“I’m disappointed with the result. We could have taken all three points. We respect Inter Miami and their big-name players, but we could’ve finished the game in the first half by scoring three or four goals.” — Wessam Abou Ali, Ah Ahly forward.
Seven Saudi-based foreign players to feature in 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup
- Five of the selected players featured in the latest season of the Saudi Pro League, while the remaining two played in the First Division
RIYADH: Seven Saudi-based foreign professional footballers have been called up to represent their national teams in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, which will take place in the US and Canada from June 14 to July 6.
Five of the selected players featured in the latest season of the Saudi Pro League, while the remaining two played in the First Division, highlighting the growing global impact of football in the Kingdom.
Among the standout names is Julian Quinones, the prolific striker for Al-Qadsiah, who earned a spot on Mexico’s national team roster. Quinones had an impressive season, finishing as the fourth highest scorer in the top flight with 20 goals.
Panama included Orlando Mosquera, the dependable goalkeeper from Al-Fayha, who helped his team secure a 13th-place finish in the league.
The Jamaican squad features two Saudi-based players: Demarai Gray, the winger for Al-Ettifaq, and Damion Lowe, the defender from Al-Okhdood.
Curacao’s team includes relegated Al-Wehda midfielder Juninho Bacuna, and Jurien Gaari, the defender from Al-Hazem, who secured promotion to the SPL.
Finally, Honduras will be represented by Romell Quioto, the striker for Al-Arabi, who finished the season 12th in the second tier’s standings.
