The highly-anticipated Champions League clash between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich was an insipid anti-climax as the Bavarians ran out deserving 1-0 winners.
PSG, in the absence of Kylian Mbappe for much of the bout, lacked any sort of cohesion against Julian Nagelsmann’s evolving machine. A complex possession structure allowed Bayern to control large swathes of Tuesday’s contest and they grabbed the winner early on in the second half through Kingsley Coman.
Mbappe’s introduction midway through the second period tilted the tide somewhat as the Frenchman had a couple of potential equalisers ruled out for offside – one of which was incredibly tight.
Nevertheless, Bayern held on and will take a slender advantage into the second leg next month. Perhaps it’s the last time we’ll see Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe line up together in a Champions League bout.
The second leg between PSG and Bayern is scheduled for 8 March. Thus, there’s plenty of time before the two European behemoths meet again.
PSG should have a fully fit Mbappe available for the reverse fixture after the Frenchman admitted he shouldn’t have played on Tuesday night. Nevertheless, there are questions over whether Christophe Galtier will still be in charge by the time 8 March rolls around.
Galtier, like Mauricio Pochettino before him, has struggled to establish balance in his star-studded side. Toxicity is clouding the French capital, with PSG embarking on a dreadful run of form to start 2023. Since the turn of the new year; Lens, Rennes, and Monaco have all beaten the current Ligue 1 leaders, while Marseille dumped them out of the Coupe de France.
Les Parisiens have home games against Lille and Nantes as well as a visit to Marseille before the second leg in Munich. They must gather some momentum from somewhere.
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Credit: 90min.com
