Paris dominate at Le Mans and reach the quarter-finals!

Just three days after a comprehensive 2-5 win over Brest, Paris Saint-Germain travelled west again, this time to Le Mans for the Coupe de Framce Round of 16 encounter. Against the National 1 side, Luis Enrique opted to field a central defensive pairing of Willian Pacho and Lucas Beraldo in front of goalkeeper Matvey Safonov. Yoram Zagué started at right-back, with Lucas Hernandez on the opposite side. In midfield, Fabian Ruiz took over the captain's armband and lined up in support of Senny Mayulu and Lee Kang-In, while Désiré Doué and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia occupied the wings, supported by Gonçalo Ramos in the centre.

The match kicked off at a sold-out Stade Marie-Marvingt. Despite a difficult pitch, the capital club immediately tried to settle into their game. But Le Mans showed they would pounce at the slightest opportunity, as seen in Théo Eyoum's first shot of the game (7'). Ten minutes later, Lee Kang-In hit back with a left-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area, but failed to hit the target (17'). The Parisians‘ pressure in the opposition half continued to mount, and their dominance was rewarded when Gonçalo Ramos collected a high ball and played it to Désiré Doué, who finished perfectly with a right-footed cross-shot (0-1, 25’).

The Sarthois outfit tried to respond, but Matvey Safonov was untroubled in the first half, except for Antoine Rabillard's header which went wide (39'). It was not enough to threaten the Rouge et Bleu who continued to enjoy long spells of possession in an attempt to score a second goal, but failed to do so before the break. The balance of power was similar in the second half, with Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi coming on as full-backs. It was from the flanks that the Parisians tried to make the difference, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia creating a clever opening for Senny Mayulu, who saw his powerful shot from a tight angle go over the Le Mans crossbar (60').

It was then time for the Parisians to attack the Sang & Or goal again, as they came up against an opposition defence that was as compact as it was disciplined. But as the clock ticked down, the home side began to show signs of fatigue. This proved to be a blessing for Bradley Barcola, who had just come on as a substitute, he broke down the left wing before firing a powerful shot past Ewan Hatfout that went just under the bar (0-2, 71'). Paris had made the second breakthrough, and even came close to adding to their tally a few moments later when Achraf Hakimi, perfectly set up by Kvaratskhelia, forced the Le Mans keeper to make a save (73'). The end of the match was marked by another event, with Presnel Kimpembe coming on to make his return to competitive action against the Sarthois side, almost two years after his serious injury.

Nothing could go wrong for the capital club, who beat Les Manceaux to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Coupe de Frane after a match that was generally well-controlled. Now it's back to Ligue 1 action, with AS Monaco on Friday 7th February at the Parc des Princes. It's a top-of-the-table clash for the Parisians, with kick-off in the capital at 9.05pm!