Chawinga and Paris turn on the style against Dijon

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Paris Saint-Germain defeated Dijon FCO 5-2 in the final Arkema D1 match of the weekend on Sunday 12 November at the Stade Gaston Gérard.

Three weeks after their last D1 outing and a convincing 4-0 win away to Lille, Les Parisiennes were finally back in league action with another away trip, this time to Dijon FCO on Matchday 7.

Coach Jocelyn Prêcheur went with Clare Hunt and Thiniba Samoura in the centre of defence in front of ‘keeper Constance Picaud. On the flanks, Sakina Karchaoui played on the left side of the defence, while Jade Le Guilly lined up on the right. In midfield, Korbin Albert sat in front of the defence, alongside Jackie Groenen and captain Grace Geyoro. Up front, Marie-Antoinette Katoto led the attack, supported by Tabitha Chawinga on the left wing and Sandy Baltimore on the right.

Paris' first chance came down the right, when Jade Le Guilly sent over a perfect cross for Marie-Antoinette Katoto, who shot wide. Les Rouge et Bleu dominated the early stages of the game and it wasn’t long before Grace Geyoro capped off the bright start with the opening goal from close range from a Katoto cross (0-1, 12’).

Just before the half-hour mark, Katoto was at it again as she continues to return to her best after that lengthy injury lay off, finding Tabitha Chawinga on the left: the Parisian forward broke into the opposition box and slotted the ball between the legs of the Dijon goalkeeper (0-2, 25’). Les Parisiennes continued to press, but were unable to add to their lead before the half-time interval.

At the start of the second period, Paris went back on the attack and Chawinga took full advantage of a mistake in the home side’s defence: the Malawi international picked up the ball and dribbled past Alice Pinguet before scoring into the empty net (0-3, 47'). The third goal sparked the home team to life as young Malou Marcetto Rylov took advantage of a favourable bounce on the edge of the area to reduce the arrears with a powerful right-foot shot just before the hour mark (1-3, 59’).

Dijon had their tails up and, urged on by the home crowd, began a spirited comeback. The home fans were on their feet when Chengshu Wu's twenty-yard shot from a quick attack further closed the gap (2-3, 65’). But the stadium’s delight was quickly dampened by the club from the capital, when Sandy Baltimore’s corner was turned home at the back post by Chawinga for her hat-trick (2-4, 71’)!

The Rouge et Bleu were back on the front foot, led by the enterprising Sakina Karchaoui down the left flank. The France international crossed for new signing Amalie Vangsgaard to score Paris' fifth and final goal of this entertaining encounter (2-5, 73’).

Paris Saint-Germain now turns attentions to the UEFA Women's Champions League and a trip to the Netherlands, where they will face Ajax Amsterdam on Matchday 1. The European showdown takes place on Wednesday November 15, with kick-off scheduled for 21:00 CET.