Stats & facts: 2021 in numbers!

INTENSE RHYTHM

Due to the pandemic and a slew of trophies on offer, Paris had to buckle down to maintain an intense rhythm. As a result, the capital side disputed 61 matches in all competitions in 2021 (41 wins, 10 draws, 10 defeats), the club's all-time record for a calendar year.

In fact, among the teams in Europe's top-five leagues, only Manchester City (53) and Bayern Munich (42) managed more victories than Paris's total of 41 in 2021. And with the club still involved in three competitions on the cusp of 2022, the road ahead remains long!

Lastly, Paris won 29 Ligue 1 games under Mauricio Pochettino in 2021, compared to six draws and five defeats. Only twice before have the capital outfit posted more top-flight victories in a calendar year: in 2017 (31) and 2015 (30).

Di Maria: ASSIST KING

This May, Angel Di Maria chose the illustrious stage of the Coupe de France final to snare a prestigious individual honour, becoming the all-time leading assist-provider in PSG history. By setting up Kylian Mbappé in the 2-0 win against Monaco, he registered his 104^th assist for the club and moved ahead of Safet Susic, who had held the record for 30 years.

The Rosario native was not finished there either! This season, Di Maria has set a new record as the Argentinian to have worn the club's shirt on the most occasions (280), surpassing the benchmark set by Javier Pastore (269).  

FRIENDS REUNITED

It is difficult to deny the impact caused by the absence of supporters last season. Due to the health crisis, no fans could fill the stadium to cheer the team on, and Paris clearly suffered as a result. That was especially true in the UEFA Champions League, with the capital side able to shine in both Catalonia and Bavaria but far less convincing at home. An odd paradox underlined by the fact that Paris finished the Ligue 1 season having trailed for just 51 minutes on their travels – beating the record set by St-Étienne in 1969/70 (68 minutes).

This season, with fans able to return to the Parc des Princes, Paris duly set out to reclaim their own territory. Consider that mission accomplished, since the team remain unbeaten at home since the start of the campaign, going 12 games without defeat. In addition to a trio of European wins against Manchester City, Leipzig and Club Brugge, Paris have also given the home crowd plenty to savour in the domestic realm. Overall, Les Rouge et Bleu have picked up 25 points from nine home fixtures in Ligue 1 – a total unsurpassed in Europe's top-five championships this term.

FINISHING IN STYLE

Victorious against Lorient in the last game before the winter break, Paris kept up a fine tradition. Indeed, the capital club have now won their final game of the calendar year for the past seven years: starting away to Caen (3-0, 2015) before home triumphs against Lorient (5-0, 2016), Caen (3-1, 2017), Nantes (1-0, 2018), Amiens (4-1, 2019) and Strasbourg (4-0, last year). Moreover, Paris remain unbeaten in their last fixture of the year for the last 11 years, a run stretching back to 2010!

EUROPEAN MEMORIES

Paris pulled off a sizeable feat by defeating Champions League holders Bayern Munich in February. Not only did Les Rouge et Bleu manage to down the Bavarian giants on their own soil, they also ended the hosts' two-year unbeaten run in the competition, with Bayern's previous loss a 3-1 reverse against Liverpool on 13 March 2019. The then European champions had managed 19 European games without defeat until Paris's visit.

Then, by qualifying for the semi-finals, Paris secured their ticket to the Champions League semi-finals for the third time, after 1995 and 2020 - only Monaco have done better among French clubs in the competition's history (4 times). Now we''ll see you in 2022 for the next game on the European scene, against Real Madrid!

Mbappé on fire

It's hard to just write a few lines to give a statistical view of Kylian Mbappé's year in 2021, given how amazing the year has been. The man who was recently voted player of the year at the Globes Soccer Awards scored a whopping 43 goals and provided 16 assists for Paris Saint-Germain alone over the calendar year, his personal best. He also scored a record-breaking hat-trick at the Camp Nou and a brace at Bayern Munich, and scored a staggering 10 goals in the Champions League in 2021. Only Robert Lewandowski scored more (11) in Europe.

In the league too, he excelled at the end of last season, becoming the first player to be crowned top scorer in Ligue 1 in three consecutive seasons for more than 19 years when it was a certain Jean-Pierre Papin (5 times between 1987/88 and 1991/92). 2021 was also the year when the n°7 had the luxury of becoming the youngest player in history to reach the 100-goal mark in Ligue 1 at 22 years, 3 months and 1 day (during his match against Lyon).

This season, the man who is currently the best passer in the league (8 assists) continues to be an incredible statistical phenomenon, as with his 30th and 31st Champions League goals, the Parisian striker became the youngest player to reach this milestone in the history of the competition (22 years and 352 days).
The icing on the cake is that against Brugge (a match in which he was decisive on three occasions), he scored his fastest goal in his professional career in 1 minute and 11 seconds.
It's simple, with 147 goals in total for the Rouge et Bleu, only Edinson Cavani (200) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (156) have managed to do better in Paris history.

automn champions

After last season's disappointment, Paris wanted to regain their position as leaders without wasting any time in the league! The first page of the contract was fulfilled for the club from the capital, as they offered themselves the honorary title of autumn champions, celebrating the best club from the first phase. With a lead of no less than 13 points over their nearest challengers, OGC Nice and Olympique de Marseille, Paris are comfortably seated at the top of the table, ahead of the events of 2022. In terms of statistics, this gap is a good omen, as it is more than 20 years since a team with a lead of more than 9 points at the end of the first phase has not won the title.

Messi in Paris

After arriving in Paris this summer, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner came to provide the City of Light with excitement. There was that very first goal against Manchester City, which sent the Parc des Princes into raptures. There were the countless attempts that were unlucky to not go in (no less than 6 times in Ligue 1), and even the first stats that are starting to come in. Against Saint-Etienne on 28 November, for example, he delivered the first hat-trick of assists by a Paris player in Ligue 1 since Blaise Matuidi in January 2016.
In the Champions League, the second-highest scorer in the competition's history has improved his tally, scoring five goals in as many games for Paris. The striker has now scored in 17 different Champions League seasons, a record in the competition.

a show of ChARACTer

"Never give up, always support" is a song dear to our supporters, and our players have made it their motto this season! In the matches of Strasbourg, Brest, Lyon, Metz Montpellier and so many others, Paris made their goals in the final minutes a real strength of character. And the Parisians did not make the stats lie in the final match of the year against Lorient.
Despite being a man down, the Parisians still managed to find the resources to score a late goal in the 91st minute, with a header from Mauro Icardi. As a result, Paris have won 10 points in the last 5 minutes of play in Ligue 1 this season, which is at least double that of any other team in the competition!

bring the cup home 

By winning the final against AS Monaco at the Stade de France, the club from the capital won their 14th Coupe de France in May 2021. Paris Saint-Germain were already the record holders for the number of victories in the competition, so they continued their progress in the oldest of competitions! And the Parisians are continuing their winning streak, having now won 41 of their last 43 French Cup matches. See you at the beginning of the year in Brittany for the adventure to continue against Vannes!