The leader Paris Saint-Germain fell clearly this Saturday in his visit to Nantes (now 5th) by 3-1, on matchday 25 of Ligue 1, despite the fact that the Brazilian Neymar returned to the starting lineup for the first time since November, following an injury to his left ankle.
‘Ney’ was the protagonist when he scored the only goal for his team and even missed a penalty, but the team from the capital left this match empty-handed.
The Parisian club continues to have a clear advantage, of 13 points, against its closest rival, Marseille, who will try to close the gap on Sunday in their stadium against Clermont-Ferrand (15th).
The clash began with intensity. The Spanish side Juan Bernat almost opened the electronic (3), but the ball ended up being rejected by a spectacular Alban Lafont. Moments later, an error by Kylian Mbappé caused the counterattack that ended with Randal Muani crossing a shot before the powerless exit of Costa Rican Keylor Navas (4), which was the first goal of the game. Immediately afterwards, a great triangulation between Lionel Messi, Neymar and Mbappé left the Argentine in front of the French goalkeeper (8), who saved the tie with the mitt.
With chances in both areas, Nantes managed to widen the difference through a very hard shot by Quentin Merlin (16) from the left side of the goal. The player scored his first goal in the 16 games played in the French championship.
Later, Neymar and Mbappé enjoyed their chances, but the night promised to be cursed. In the injury time of the first part, the referee sanctioned with the maximum penalty after a handball by the Dutchman Emile Wijnaldum. Ludovic Blas threw the ball hard into the center leaving Navas surprised, who was also unable to do anything to prevent Nantes’ third goal (45+2), more accurate against a rival that practically nothing came of it.
After the break, Neymar closed the gap through a great play initiated by Messi, which allowed the Brazilian to dribble past several defenders and finish calmly (46). PSG seemed to reemerge from a disastrous first half with good moments. A penalty in favor of the Paris team after a downing of Mbappé gave hope of a comeback, but Lafont, once again, caught the leather after a very weak shot from Neymar (58).
Neymar’s penalty
AFP
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