Barney Ronay’s match report
And the others in tonight’s Champions League …
FULL TIME: Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Real Madrid
This doesn’t flatter Paris Saint-Germain at all. Who needs Neymar? Thomas Tuchel’s side were well worth their three-goal victory; they could easily have had a couple more. It bodes well for their latest tilt at the elusive Champions League. Real Madrid on the other hand were a bit of a shambles, and yet they still had two goals disallowed for marginal offences, Gareth Bale so close to a juggle and lob that would have resonated down the ages. So it’s all relative ... and it’s only matchday one, mid-September after all. Thanks for reading!
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90 min +3: Nope. They make a proper collective balls of it.
90 min +2: Bernat is booked for a slide on Carvajal down the right. A free kick just by the Paris box. A consolation for Madrid?
GOAL! PSG 3-0 Real Madrid (Meunier 90+1)
Meunier one-twos with Di Maria to romp into acres down the right. PSG are two on one ... and it’s the other full back Bernat who’s up with him! Meunier slips the ball to Bernat, who could shoot but decides to pass it back. Meunier sidefoots solidly into the top right.
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90 min: There will be added minutes. Three of them.
89 min: PSG swap an attacker for a defender. Abdou Diallo comes on for Pablo Sarabia.
87 min: This match is petering out. Benzema’s lively couple of minutes apart, Real Madrid have done very little to fight back in this second half. While we watch the clock tick down, here’s Lee Madden: “I must say, Eden Hazard looked very rusty this evening and the vast majority of their players have looked off the pace. As a Chelsea fan, I did wonder why Hazard would go to Madrid at this point, but it really does look like Madrid are as far as making an impact on Europe as Chelsea this season. Same for Courtois – he’s looked below par and I do wonder what the big appeal with Madrid is.” An elegant variation on the classic Mrs Merton question, right there.
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85 min: Di Maria skedaddles in from the right and whips a low pass towards Choupo-Moting, on the edge of the box. The former Stoke man lashes a first-time shot over the bar. Close, but not quite.
84 min: Sarabia has his standing leg whipped from under him by Kroos. A frustrated challenge. The referee takes no action as the clock ticks on.
82 min: Bernat is busy lashing a clearance up the touchline. He gets his ankle clipped by Vinicius Junior, who is booked for the clumsy challenge. Di Maria goes in the book too, for getting involved in the referee’s decision-making process and nearly instigating a donnybrook.
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80 min: Bale is replaced by Vinicius Junior.
79 min: Real have finally come to life. Bale crosses deep from the right. Benzema rises highest at the far post and sends a header back across goal. It’s inches away from bouncing into the bottom right. Wide. What a thoroughly strange performance Real have put in this evening.
78 min: For all Real’s general impotence this evening, they’ve still had the ball in the opposition net twice. On another night, the small margins, etc.
76 min: Real finally show a bit of snap in the tackle, and it nearly pays off. Benzema, cutting in from the right, lashes a loose ball across Navas and into the bottom left! A gorgeous finish. But Lucas Vazquez, from a well-offside position, had run across Benzema just before he shot, and is flagged for interfering with play.
74 min: Herrera turns on a sixpence to make space in midfield, then slips Choupo-Moting into acres down the left. The resulting cross is dreadful. But the visitors keep giving up opportunity after opportunity.
72 min: Corner for PSG out on the left. The ball’s worked patiently this way and that. They don’t really go anywhere, but before you know it another couple of minutes have been shaved off the countdown clock. The hosts are in total control of this match.
70 min: Yep, on he comes. And it’s a double change by Real Madrid, who hook Eden Hazard and the extremely disappointing James Rodriguez, sending on Lucas Vazquez and Luka Jovic in their place.
69 min: Ander Herrera, formerly of Manchester United, prepares to replace the cramped Marquinhos.
67 min: Hazard is doing his best to get his new team going. He drives at full pelt down the left, putting the home defence very much on the back foot. He exchanges passes with Benzema, but the pair don’t look on the same wavelength yet. First Hazard delays a pass that would have released his partner down the flank; then Benzema shoves Hazard too far wide with a return into the box. Early days.
65 min: The hosts are still winning the lion’s share of the midfield battles. Verratti in particular has been immense. Real haven’t worked Navas since the restart.
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63 min: On the touchline, Zinedine Zidane smiles wryly. He knows his team are in danger of making a show of themselves here.
61 min: Icardi is replaced by Choupo-Moting. Then there’s yet another great chance for PSG, as Di Maria dances into the area from the left and tees up Sarabia, who slams a first-time sidefoot wide left. Inches wide. PSG are rampant.
60 min: And this was even closer, as Di Maria is released into acres down the inside left. He enters the box, draws Courtois, and really should elegantly chip him for his hat-trick, but lifts the ball clumsily over the bar. Real Madrid are all over the shop at the back.
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59 min: PSG knock it around for a bit. Then suddenly they spring into action. Gueye bursts into space and shoves a pass down the inside-left for Di Maria, whose low cross only just evades Icardi in the middle. Close.
57 min: Yep, he’s back on.
56 min: Di Maria is getting a bit of treatment on his ankle, having been clipped by Mendy on the follow-through after a 50-50 challenge. Plenty of magic spray drenching the old sock. It looks as though he’ll be fine to continue.
55 min: A little bit better from Real, who slowly march forward. Benzema’s mere presence in the PSG box panics Bernat into a wild slice over his own crossbar. The resulting corner is a bit of a non-event, though. It’s all a bit of an effort for Madrid right now.
53 min: Plenty of possession for Real Madrid, but it’s all in their own half. Most of it in their final third. PSG quite happy not to commit too many players forward and let them get on with it.
51 min: Hazard embarks on a sensational dribble from left to right, across the field of play. Only problem is, it’s near his own box, getting his out-of-shape team-mates out of bother. He eventually draws a foul from his international chum Meunier.
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49 min: But he’s earned the right I guess. He sashays down the left again, nearly busting his way through the Real back line, but eventually giving the ball away. He’s so good to watch in full flight, and when he’s in the mood. He’s certainly up for it tonight.
47 min: Di Maria flicks the ball this way and that, tip-toeing on the touchline, frustrating the nearby Bale. Possibly a bit early for the old showboating, but each to their own.
Here we go again, then! Real Madrid get the second half underway. No changes. Here’s another thing that hasn’t changed: Real are still giving the ball away cheaply in midfield. It’s not long before Veratti snaffles a loose Kroos pass, sending the hosts piling forward. They don’t go anywhere in particular, but that’s not exactly a statement of intent by Real.
Half-time patter. “Courtois lets in two low shots? Can’t help but feel that a shorter keeper would have got to them.” Satire, ladies and gents, courtesy of Felix Wood.
Half-time entertainment. Just in case you didn’t realise, the Spurs game kicked off early today. David Hytner was in Greece to witness last season’s finalists ship a two-goal lead.
HALF TIME: Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 Real Madrid
This doesn’t flatter the French champions.
45 min +1: Bale, who has been Real’s biggest threat, is fed by Carvajal just to the right of the D. He sends a fierce daisy-cutter inches wide of the right-hand post.
45 min: There will be two added minutes.
44 min: Di Maria dances in from the right and is skittled to the ground. No idea why that’s not a free kick just to the right of the Real D, but the referee waves play on. Perhaps he’s feeling a pang of sympathy for the 13-time European champions, who are being thoroughly outplayed.
42 min: Madrid give Di Maria, Sarabia and Gueye the run of the penalty area. They’re all over the place at the back. The ball pinballs around, and sails out for a corner. Courtois claims this one. Some relief for Real, who are very much second best right now.
40 min: Bah, though. Bah!
38 min: Bale responds by trying to larrup a pearler into the net from 35 yards. It’s always flying over. It’d have been nice to see that one fly in. What a fine goal he nearly scored (x2).
VAR: NO GOAL! PSG 2-0 Real Madrid
37 min: This is such a shame. While Bale was juggling his way down the channel, the ball brushed him on the right wrist before dropping towards his boot and being dispatched with exquisite skill into the net. It’s the right decision, I guess - Bale certainly looked a bit sheepish after scoring, and didn’t celebrate too wildly - though the ball wasn’t really diverted by his wrist. Neither did the player make a deliberate movement with his arm towards it. But that’s that. On behalf of all lovers of football: bah.
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GOAL! PSG 2-1 Real Madrid (Bale 35)
What a strike this is! Carvajal hits long. Marquinhos heads half clear. Bale traps, juggles it this way and that down the inside-right channel, past Bernat, and lobs it over Navas and into the top left from the edge of the area! That is quite sensational!
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GOAL! PSG 2-0 Real Madrid (Di Maria 33)
What a belter this is! A throw on the right. Gueye takes up possession and slips the ball inside for Di Maria, who takes a touch before creaming an unstoppable drive towards the bottom-right corner! Courtois had no chance! And it’s no more than PSG deserve.
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32 min: Bale takes, trying to whip one over the wall and into the top right. It’s always going over and wide. PSG head up the other end of the park, and Icardi is wrestled over under a high ball by Carvajal, who is booked for his trouble.
31 min: Bale tries to work a bit of space to the right of the PSG D, having taken possession of a ball slipped inside by Carvajal. He’s upended clumsily by Gueye. A free kick that sets Bale’s eyes a-sparkling!
30 min: Verratti is winning everything in midfield. He snaps into a tackle and fires a pass down the inside left for Icardi, who very nearly spins clear into the box. The ball ends up clanking off his shin and out for a goal kick, but Real can’t keep going like this.
28 min: Meunier and Gueye split Real Madrid down the right, setting up Di Maria for a shot that’s blocked and hacked clear. PSG look extremely dangerous in every attack.
26 min: Wonderful defending by Mendy, who surely saves Madrid from conceding a second goal. Icardi creams a lovely pass down the inside-right channel to release Sarabia. For a second, the PSG forward is clear. But Mendy gets his body in the way and shepherds the ball out for a goal kick. Masterful.
24 min: Real hog the ball in midfield for a while, but do very little with it. The passage of play does quieten the crowd a little, though.
22 min: A deep cross into the Paris box from the right. Benzema competes for a header, but doesn’t get anything on target. There are surely more goals in this match.
20 min: Di Maria flies with great purpose down the left. He whips a cross into the area in the hope of finding Icardi. Militao star-jumps in a very strange fashion - think Keown baiting Van Nistelrooy back in the day - but manages to cushion the ball in his belly without giving away a penalty for handball. That was fairly risky.
19 min: James and Benzema play a long-distance one-two, the latter teeing up the former in a central position 20 yards out. The resulting effort flies 20 yards over.
17 min: Sarabia burst through a gap in the Real midfield and makes off down the inside right. He can’t find Icardi or Di Maria in the centre with a low cross, and is bundled out of it, but the hosts are looking dangerous every time they go forward.
16 min: Not 100 percent sure the keeper covered himself in glory there. Though there was such snap in Di Maria’s shot, you have to credit the attacking play. Speaking of which, here’s Hazard, nearly striking back immediately for Real, taking a touch with his back to goal on the edge of the PSG box, turning, and whistling a low fizzer inches wide of the right-hand post. Navas wouldn’t have got there had it been on target.
GOAL! PSG 1-0 Real Madrid (Di Maria 14)
PSG ping it around in slow motion for a while. Then suddenly they spring into action. Icardi one-twos with a bursting Bernat down the left. Bernat reaches the byline and pulls the ball back to Di Maria, on the left-hand corner of the six-yard box. Di Maria pokes it with great power into the bottom left, surprising Courtois at his near post!
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12 min: Hazard is clattered to the ground by Meunier, out on the Real left. The resulting free kick finds Benzema at the far post, but the striker can’t sort his feet out to get a shot away, and he’s soon dispossessed as PSG swarm around him.
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10 min: Meunier backs himself in a foot race with Mendy, knocking the ball past the young full back and tearing off after it. He doesn’t quite win it, though it’s Mendy’s positioning rather than pace that gets him out of bother this time.
8 min: Real counter, and Bale finds himself in a lot of space down the right. He’s got men in the middle, but slaps a low cross straight into the arms of Navas. A lovely open feel to these early exchanges.
7 min: A lovely flick by Di Maria, dropping deep, sets Bernat off into acres down the left. He drops a shoulder to make his way past Carvajal and enter the box, but loses the run of himself not long after that.
5 min: Real stroke it around for the first time in the match. A cacophony of whistling. Both sides just feeling each other out at the moment.
4 min: More room for Meunier down the right. He floats a cross over the bar, a waste as a couple of his pals were in the Madrid penalty box. It’s a lively start by the hosts.
2 min: And now there’s a bit of space for Gueye, of all people, the ball dropping to him just inside the Real area. Militao is in the thick of the action again, as he closes the midfielder down before he can get a shot away. But a lively start for the hosts.
And we’re off! The hosts get the party started. They stroke it around the back for a bit. Then Meunier romps into space down the right. He dinks the ball inside for Sarabia, who tries to purchase a penalty off the arm off Militao. You’ve seen them given, most notably in the first 25 seconds of the final last season. But not this time. The ref’s not interested.
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The teams are out! The Champions League anthem blasts out of the PA speakers at the Parc des Princes. Then they finally turn it down and let the crowd do their thing. A fine atmosphere on a warm early-autumn evening in Paris. We’ll be off before you know it!
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For the completists ... and because there’s not much more to be said before the teams come out in 20 minutes or so ... here’s what Thiago Silva will be handing over to his opposite number Karim Benzema as a pre-match gift. A little bit busier than the Real pennant, but none the worse for it. Ah the magnificent pomp of association football.
The dressing rooms. Some top-of-the-range wood panelling in the changing rooms at the Parc des Princes. High-quality cushioned seating also. A vague high-class whiff of Ibrox about the whole place. By the looks of things, the hosts will be playing in their gorgeous third-choice shirts, a vague Crystal Palace Team of the Eighties homage. (The blue and red stripes are vertical as opposed to diagonal.) Admittedly this comparison isn’t so clear when pictured from behind. Close your eyes and think of Clive Allen, you’ll not be far off.
That means Real Madrid will be wearing their second-choice blue. Very nice as well, though it’s the understated beauty of the pennant that really works. A bumper crop of merchandise tonight.
PSG make five changes to the team named for the 1-0 victory over Strasbourg on Saturday. Presnel Kimpembe, Marquinhos, Thomas Meunier, Juan Bernat and Mauri Icardi take the places of Layvin Kurzawa, Abdou Diallo, Colin Dagba, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Neymar.
Real Madrid are restrained by comparison. Just the four changes to the XI sent out for the 3-2 win over Levante four nights ago. Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy, Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale replace Lucas Vazquez, Vinicius Junior, Marcelo and Sergio Ramos.
The teams
Paris Saint-Germain: Navas, Meunier, Thiago Silva, Kimpembe, Bernat, Marquinhos, Gueye, Verratti, Sarabia, Icardi, Di Maria.
Subs: Nianzou Kouassi, Paredes, Sergio Rico, Choupo-Moting, Kurzawa, Ander Herrera, Diallo.
Real Madrid: Courtois, Carvajal, Eder Militao, Varane, Mendy, Kroos, Casemiro, Rodriguez, Bale, Benzema, Hazard.
Subs: Areola, Lucas, Jovic, Odriozola, Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo, De la Fuente.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (England).
Preamble
Two European heavyweights meet tonight in Paris ... sort of. Think of this as PSG Lite versus Diet Real Madrid. There are a few folk missing, you see.
The hosts will be desperate to make an early statement tonight. They need to atone for their abysmal capitulation last season in the last 16 against Manchester United. But they’ll have to do it without their entire first-choice forward line of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani. Mbappe and Cavani are injured, while Neymar is suspended after criticising the ref on social media in the wake of that United fiasco.
Real Madrid are also missing some big names. Luka Modric, Isco, Marco Asensio and Marcelo are injured, while Nacho and (surprise!) Sergio Ramos are suspended. But this means Eden Hazard could make his first start for his new club, since moving from Chelsea in the summer, so it’s swings and roundabouts.
It’ll still be a star-studded affair, mind. And history points to a Real win. They knocked PSG out of the round of 16 two seasons ago, 5-2 on aggregate, and the Parisians haven’t tasted victory against Los Merengues since March 1994 in the Cup Winners Cup. It’s been a while. But then again, all runs have to come to an end sometime. It’s on!
Kick off: 8pm BST, 9pm in Paris.
