PSG twice blow the chance to win Ligue 1 title

Thomas Tuchel has been left to lick his wounds as his side have lost twice on the bounce in Ligue 1, with just one more victory necessary to be named champions for successive seasons.

After playing out a stalemate at home to Strasbourg, PSG made the trip to the Stade-Pierre Mauroy to face off against Lille who are placed second on the league standings.

The hosts dominated in terms of attacking play, creating nineteen chances, ten more than their opponents. Just seven minutes in, Thomas Meunier conceded an own goal as the ball bounced from his outstretched leg into the back of the the net. 1-0 Lille.

Any concerns from PSG fans were soon forgotten about when Juan Bernat netted the equaliser less than five minutes later, although the 26-year-old Spaniard made things rather difficult for his teammates by receiving a controversial red card ten minutes from the half time whistle.

In the second half, Nicolas Pepe put the home side in front as he slotted the ball cooly under Areola’s legs and handed Christophe Galtier’s men an unexpected lead for the second time in the match.

Jonathan Bamba got the third with a sumptuous left-footed thunderbolt that the goalkeeper had little chance of stopping, while defender Gabriel put himself on the scoresheet by heading a cross from a free kick into the bottom corner. PSG simply could not handle Lille at this point.

Former Southampton player Jose Fonte made it 5-1 with six minutes remaining on the clock, powering the ball past a helpless Areola with his head and sealing maximum points for his side. PSG had blown it.

Tuchel then took his squad to the Stade de la Beaujoire where they met with Patrick Collot’s team in what was a tighter game than anyone expected, especially considering the implications any result would have for PSG.

Dani Alves rolled back the years twenty minutes into the tie with a delicious long range right-footed curling effort which saw the ball end up in the top corner. PSG looked ready to take Ligue 1 in style.

Diego Carlos had other ideas however and bagged the leveller three minutes later, heading the ball in from a standing position after the ball had been whipped by Rongier’s corner.

Then came what every Paris-Saint-Germain supporter feared, the goal to put the opposition in front and potentially have their party spoiled yet again. It was a tap in for Abdul Majeed Waris with most of the plaudits aimed towards Moutoussamy who picked out the attacker at the back post.

For the third Nantes goal, it was again a set piece that was the league leader’s undoing. Poor marking allowed Carlos to run past three defenders and strike the ball towards the bottom left corner, only for his shot to deflect off Alves and the former Barcelona right-back was unfortunate enough to be credited with the own goal to make it 3-1. PSG were in real trouble.

Turkish youngster Metehan Guclu celebrated his PSG debut with a goal and gave him team a chance of rescuing a point, but it was not to be. The scoreline read 3-2 as the game ended, and with it so did PSG’s hopes of securing another Ligue 1 title, for another week at least.

Before most big Champions League ties that involve PSG, the same question is asked: Can PSG get themselves motivated for such a massive event after playing against much lesser quality sides throughout the season?

Most of the time, the multi-billion pound club see off their opponents with relative ease and hit the net more than once, as their position on the table demonstrates.

With thirty-two games played, they have won twenty-six, drawn three and lost three, with two of those defeats coming in their past two outings. Ninety-two goals have been scored by the team and only twenty-six conceded, giving them a huge goal difference of +66. There are currently seventeen points between PSG and Lille in second, which speaks volumes in itself.

As shocking as they are on paper, these results were going to come sooner or later. PSG gave up a two goal lead against a severely depleted Manchester United side in the last 16 of this year’s Champions League and suffered elimination from the tournament as ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men found a late winner thanks to a penalty scored by Marcus Rashford.

That was a sign of the mentality within the PSG camp. There is undoubtedly a lack of desire to constantly push themselves to be the best because even when they don’t play at their absolute best they are can defeat anyone in the league by multiple goals.

Improvement is needed, whether it be in the coaching staff or the recruitment cycle. They will win Ligue 1, the players already know that before every season. If the title race is close they have failed in their duty, that is a problem and it desperately needs to be addressed.