Kylian Mbappe scored either side of a Lionel Messi effort as Paris Saint-Germain beat Ajaccio 3-0 at Stade François Coty in Ligue 1. The win extends PSG’s lead at the top of the table to six points, with Christophe Galtier’s side holding a record of 10 wins and two draws from 12 matches; that leaves them on 32 points. FC Lorient are sat in second on 26, with Lens third on 24.
Paris Saint-Germain extended their lead at the top of Ligue 1 to six points with a comfortable 3-0 win over AC Ajaccio at Stade Francois Coty.
Despite not being at their usual incisive best, PSG were the side to open the scoring after 24 minutes, as Kylian Mbappe latched onto Leo Messi’s through ball to emphatically finish first-time beyond Ajaccio goalkeeper Benjamin Leroy and into the net.
Les Parisiens really should’ve been two goals up 10 minutes later, but Mbappe blazed over the bar from close range as he couldn’t make the most of a superb cut-back from Achraf Hakimi.
Ajaccio rode out the storm at the start of the second half, and then created a big chance to level the game, but Youssef Belaili’s strike from the edge of the area was well tipped away by Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Paris then had the second goal they needed to kill the game in the 78th minute, as Mbappe fed in Messi with a superb backheeled assist inside the penalty area, and the Argentine tapped home beyond Ajaccio’s Leroy.
Christophe Galtier’s side sealed the points four minutes later, as Mbappe once again was teed up by a Messi through pass and finished low into the bottom-left corner of the net from close range to give PSG their second win in succession.
TALKING POINT – PSG GET THE JOB DONE
Galtier’s PSG side were not at their electrifying best tonight despite the scoreline, as they had to be patient in the first half as Ajaccio tried to come out of the traps with a quick tempo. As the game progressed, the holes in the home side’s defence opened up, and it led to Paris’ first goal, which was clinically worked and finished beautifully by Mbappe.
In the second half, they were much better and made the most of Ajaccio chasing the game to exploit the gaps in behind. Once PSG scored their second, the game was up as the Corsican outfit just switched off.
Injuries and suspensions saw some bit-part players come into the PSG starting line-up tonight such as Nordi Mukiele and Carlos Soler, and the former impressed at centre half alongside Marquinhos and did not put a foot wrong.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – LEO MESSI
Messi conjured up some magic tonight as he had a brilliant game for PSG in a role that saw him roam freely in the pockets of space in attack. More often than not, he played just behind Mbappe as a second striker, and he linked up well with his team-mate as both players were involved in all three of the Paris goals.
The 35-year-old made a total of four key passes in this match, with two of those becoming assists for Mbappe. He also completed three successful dribbles. He now has a total of 10 assists for PSG in all competitions this season, just one less than Kevin De Bruyne, who leads the way in Europe’s top five leagues with 10.
PLAYER RATINGS
AC Ajaccio: Leroy 6, Youssouf 6, Gonzalez 6, Avinel 5, Kone 7, Bayala 6, Marchetti 7, Coutadeur 6, Belaili 7, El Idrissy 6, Moussiti-Oko 6. Subs: Diallo 6, Baretto 6, Nouri 6, Hamouma 6, Mangani 6.
Paris Saint-Germain: Donnarumma 7, Hakimi 6, Mukiele 7, Marquinhos 7, Bernat 7, Ruiz 7, Verratti 8, Sanches 6, Soler 6, Mbappe 9, Messi 9. Subs: Zaire-Emery 6, Sarabia 6, Vitinha 6, Bitshiabu 6, Ekitike 6.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
21’ – JUST OVER – That is the home side’s best chance of the match! Belaili stands over the free-kick from the left, and it is a well-worked move from the training ground as he lays it off to Marchetti on the edge of the box, but his strike from distance narrowly goes over the bar!
24’ – GOAL! (Kylian Mbappe) – Mbappe strikes for the away side! Messi plays him in down the left with a nice through ball in behind, and the Frenchman finishes prolifically with his right foot past Leroy, who had no chance of keeping his finessed strike out! After a lengthy VAR check for a potential offside, the goal stands.
35’ – WHAT A MISS! – Mbappe has a rare moment of poor quality! Hakimi bursts down the right flank, and easily beats Kone for pace down that side as he gets in behind the defender. He squares it back to Mbappe – who is inside the penalty area on the left-side – but the Frenchman’s first-time effort is skewed well over the bar from close range!
71’ – SAVE! – Ajaccio finally click into gear in this second half. Marchetti plays a superb outside-of-the-foot through ball out to Belaili down the inside-left channel, but his eventual strike from 20-yards out towards the near post is well tipped away by Donnarumma as the PSG goalkeeper concedes the corner!
78’ – GOAL! (Leo Messi) – Messi gets on the scoresheet for Les Parisiens, to the annoyance of the home crowd! It is a sublime assist from Mbappe, as he plays the give-and-go back to the Argentine inside the box with a backheel that takes out Gonzalez, and Messi taps the ball home to surely seal the win for PSG.
82’ – GOAL! (Kylian Mbappe) – They now have their third! Messi has his second assist of the game, as he plays another through ball to Mbappe to his left inside the penalty area. Despite being off-balance, he just about manages to place a shot on the stretch into the bottom-left corner of the net. Game over.
KEY STATS
- Lionel Messi has now registered nine assists for PSG in Ligue 1 this season.
- Lionel Messi has delivered six assists to Kylian Mbappé with Paris in Ligue 1 2022-23, the highest tally of assists delivered from one player to another among the European Top 5 leagues this season.
- Ajaccio have now conceded 19 goals in 12 Ligue 1 matches this season, already as many as last season in Ligue 2 (19 goals conceded in 38 matches).
Source: eurosport.com
