This wasn’t a down performance from Man City, but Paris Saint-Germain’s difference-makers did enough to deliver a 2-0 win at the Parc des Princes in UEFA Champions League group stage action on Tuesday.
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PSG and Club Brugge now lead Group A with four points, with Man City holding three, and RB Leizpig one.
Man City is off to Club Brugge next, with PSG set to stay home and host Leipzig
PSG - Man City final score, stats
Final score: Paris Saint-Germain 2, Man City 0
Scorers: Gana Gueye (8'), Messi (74')
Shots: Man City 17-6
Shots on goal: Man City 17-3
Possession: Man City, 54%
Three things we learned from PSG - Man City
1. Messi: For the first time, Lionel Messi scored a goal in European club football for a team other than Barcelona, and it was a very familiar one for his old boss Pep Guardiola. With City down 1-0, the PSG man cruised just inside the 18 and hammered a shot inside the upper 90 to double the advantage.
2. Fine margins: Pep Guardiola and Man City are both very familiar with the fine margins of the UEFA Champions League, and their failure to score in a decisive first half probably cost it this game. Gana Gueye’s blast of a marginally deflected cross and quickfire Man City shots off the PSG crossbar were the difference at halftime despite the visitors looking very strong in the first 45 minutes. It didn’t happen late, but Silva’s chance rang with echoes of Raheem Sterling’s miss versus Lyon in 2020.
3. Rodri keeps the game in check: If there was a non-PSG star for City, with apologies to Riyad Mahrez and maybe Jack Grealish, it was Rodri. He only missed on four of 76 passes and had two key passes despite a very combustible and busy challenge in the Parisien midfield. He nailed a remarkable 10-of-10 long passes and won six tackles.
Man of the Match: Idrissa Gana Gueye
Messi was very, very good, but Gana Gueye was at the heart of everything aside from Messi’s goal.
LEO MESSI SCORES HIS FIRST GOAL FOR PSG 💥 pic.twitter.com/loIXhBzESC
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) September 28, 2021
PSG - Man City recap
Les Parisiens took the lead Neymar got barely any contact on his first-time bid to hit a Kylian Mbappe pass and Idrissa Gana Gueye smashed the redirection into the very upper 90.
Man City thought the match was as good as 1-1 when Bernardo Silva charged toward a City shot that clattered the underside of the crossbar, but the bounce was too lively and Silva, too, hit the underside of the bar.
Ederson made a strong leaping save on Ander Herrera in the 40th minute as PSG kept bidding for a second.
Kevin De Bruyne was perhaps fortunate to stay on the pitch when his plant foot landed squarely on the calf of a sliding Gana Gueye, but it would stay a yellow card after video review.