PSG on French high
Paris side claim another domestic treble
Paris, Aug. 1: Pablo Sarabia scored the winning penalty in a shootout as Paris SaintGermain warmed up for their assault on the Champions League in Lisbon by defeating Lyon in Friday’s French League Cup final to claim another domestic treble.
The Spaniard’s successful kick came after Keylor Navas saved from Bertrand Traore and allowed PSG to win 6-5 on penalties after the game at the Stade de France finished 0-0 at the end of extra time.
The victory comes a week after they beat SaintEtienne 1-0 in the French Cup final, the first competitive match on French soil since the Coronavirus shutdown.
They had previously been awarded the Ligue 1 title by virtue of being top when the season was ended in April with 10 rounds of matches unplayed because of the health crisis.
Before penalties, Thomas Tuchel’s team had the better of a terse final on a sweaty night, but they badly missed the injured Kylian Mbappe.
The masked France superstar watched from the stands as Lyon kept PSG at bay for two hours before having Brazilian defender Rafael sent off for chopping down Angel Di Maria on the edge of the box late in extra time.
Mbappe was injured in last week’s French Cup final, suffering a sprained ankle that looks likely to rule him out of the Champions League quarterfinal against Atalanta in Lisbon on August 12.
PSG are desperate for tangible success in Europe but on this evidence they still have some rust to shake off before being ready for that test.
This is the Qatar-owned club’s fourth treble in the last six years, but the League Cup, an unloved competition, will be discontinued next season.
It was the Parisian contingent who were celebrating at the end, as their team lifted the trophy for the ninth time in total, denying Lyon a first trophy since 2012. Both of these teams must fear being at a disadvantage in the latter stages of the Champions League though after France opted against restarting its league.