Harvey Elliott’s late goal gave Liverpool a 1-0 victory in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 after PSG had put on a strong display.
Ousmane Dembele, who looked fierce early on, gave the hosts their first significant opportunity of the match. Joao Neves scuffed a shot after the Frenchman’s deft move bounced the ball past Andrew Robertson and into the area, but Joao Neves smacked the ball into the ground and fired it over the top. Early on, Liverpool had indicators that Robertson may have a hard night against Dembele.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s superbly placed left-footed strike gave PSG the lead just minutes after the caution signals appeared, but it was chalked off after a close-call offside call. Minutes later, Kvaratskhelia’s score was disallowed, adding to the contentious VAR rulings. Although Ibrahima Konate appeared to push Bradley Barcola in the back while he was in on goal, VAR determined there was insufficient evidence to justify his dismissal.
Liverpool maintained their position as the second-best team, and before the half, the home team wasted three great chances inside the box that they most likely should have taken. This led to a major goalmouth scramble in which Bradley Barcola missed a close-range effort. Even though the Reds had survived the first few minutes of the game, they still didn’t seem focused and were being outplayed by the French powerhouses.
Even though PSG dominated the first forty-five minutes of the game, Liverpool somehow advanced to halftime with a 0-0 score.
The second half’s narrative was essentially the same as the first: PSG was applying unrelenting pressure, but they were unable to overcome Alisson, who was giving the Reds a performance of a generation.
Harvey Elliott gave Liverpool the lead in the 87th minute, just 40 seconds after replacing Mohamed Salah, despite PSG’s superiority and the French powerhouses appearing to be the only team capable of winning the game. Darwin Nunez deserves praise for his superb work in bringing the ball down and passing it off to Elliott, who then placed it into the net. Despite having a solid hand at it, Gianluigi Donnarumma was unable to stop it.
Liverpool won the first leg 1-0, and Elliott’s goal was the final action of the game.
Match Statistics: Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Liverpool
Saint-Germain, Paris
A statistic
Liverpool
70
Ownership (%)
30
27
Shots
2.
10.
Targeted Shots
One
14
The corners
2.
0
Conserves
9.
One
Yellow Cards
One
Highlights of the Match
Paris Saint-Germain Player Ratings
GK: 6/10 for Gianluigi Donnarumma
Probably could have done more to stop Elliott’s goal, but hardly did much in terms of saves or ball possession.
RB: 8/10 for Achraf Hakimi
Outside of their front three, the Moroccan was PSG’s greatest offensive threat. For ninety minutes, Hakimi moved up and down the right wing.
CB: 7.5/10 for Marquinhos
He won the majority of his duels and was very good at playing the ball out from the back. He was also a good defender when necessary.
CB: 7.5/10 for Willian Pacho
made some excellent tackles and maintained his composure and focus despite Liverpool’s lacklustre offensive play.
Nuno Mendes, LB: 8/10
Mendes barely gave Salah a kick despite facing what is undoubtedly the best player in the world at the moment. The 22-year-old was dynamic up and down the left wing and was a dominant tackler.
CM: 8/10 for Vitinha
dominated the midfield and seldom missed a pass.
CM: Joao Neves, 7.5 out of 10.
An excellent performance from box to box. As useful forward as he was defensively and when pressing, Neves was always up and down the pitch.
CM: 7.5/10 for Fabian Ruiz
produced a number of excellent opportunities for the forward line and was a dynamic presence across the pitch.
RW: 8.5/10 for Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Although it was unfortunate that his fantastic goal in the first half was disallowed, his performance was unaffected. Whether he was right, left, or central, Kvaratskhelia harassed the Liverpool defence and, like his teammates, always wanted to go forward when he took up the ball.
ST: 8/10 for Ousmane Dembele
Throughout the game, he tormented the entire Liverpool defence with his speed and brilliance. The Frenchman not only played a lot of fantastic balls into the box and produced his fair share, but he was also persistent in taking opponents on.
LW: 7.5/10 for Bradley Barcola
He was physically powerful when moving forward, making him challenging to stop. Barcola missed a few excellent opportunities, but he was always a threat.
SUB: 6.5/10 for Desire Doue
appeared menacing on the ball, but was unable to produce anything noteworthy.
N/A for Warren Zaire-Emery
After coming on, hardly much was done.
Goncalo Ramos, SUB: N/A
After coming on, hardly much was done.
Player Ratings for Liverpool
GK: 9.5/10 for Alisson Becker
kept his team in the game by himself. Throughout the game, the Brazilian made a number of outstanding saves and handled numerous risky crosses into the box expertly.
RB: 6.5/10 Trent Alexander-Arnold
recovered nicely from a very bad start to the game. Alexander-Arnold held his own defensively, but he occasionally appeared wobbly, especially in the second half.
CB: 6/10 Ibrahima Konate
appeared to have poor defence at times, and it was possibly fortunate to stay on the pitch following a first-half VAR review.
CB: 7/10 for Virgil van Dijk
To keep his team in the game, he risked his life and produced numerous outstanding blocks and clearances.
LB: 5/10 Andrew Robertson
The front three of PSG are torturing. Most of the time, Robertson came off as second best whether facing Dembele, Kvaratskhelia, or Barcola because he was unable to handle their speed and cunning.
CM: 6.5/10 for Ryan Gravenberch
He wasn’t as involved with the ball as usual, but he fought hard in midfield and held his own physically.
CM: 6.5/10 for Alexis Mac Allister
Although Mac Allister didn’t accomplish much with the ball, he maintained discipline and provided good protection for his defenders, much like his midfield partner Gravenberch.
CM: 5.5/10 for Dominik Szoboszlai
Despite being vivacious and making good midfield pressure, he didn’t contribute much creatively to his team’s game.
RW: 5/10 for Mohamed Salah
Salah was incredibly unsuccessful this season despite his excellent play. Mendes tracked the Egyptian down and dispossessed him even though he barely touched the ball.
ST: 5.5/10 for Diogo Jota
In attacking positions, they hardly touched the ball and never came close to scoring.
LW: 5.5/10 for Luis Diaz
struggled against Hakimi and didn’t contribute as much to the game’s assault as he usually does.
Darwin Nunez, SUB: 7.5/10
did a fantastic job of bringing the ball down and setting up Elliott’s score.
SUB: 7/10 Curtis Jones
After entering the pitch, his enthusiasm and pressure changed the outcome of the match for Liverpool.
Wataru Endo, SUB: N/A
After coming on, hardly much was done.
SUB: 8/10 Harvey Elliott
winner of the match. Elliott won the game for Liverpool with a goal just 47 seconds after entering the game.
Man of the Match
Becker, Alisson
Alisson Becker’s generational performance. The only reason Liverpool has a chance to win the first leg of this UEFA Champions League match is because of the Brazilian, who made nine saves overall.
In addition to making the saves, Alisson was a calm presence for his defenders under duress and had excellent box control. Liverpool’s history may be shaped by the goalie’s play.
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