Paris and Fleury share the spoils in goalless draw

It was in the special atmosphere of an Île-de-France derby that Les Parisiennes returned to competitive football away to FC Fleury 91 following the festive period last night, nearly a month after their comfortable 3-0 league win over AS Saint-Étienne. For the occasion, Fabrice Abriel, the hosts' previous manager, lined his current side up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Marie-Antoinette Katoto up front and supported by a trio comprised of Manssita Traoré, Grace Geyoro and Sakina Karchaoui.

A relentless battle was to be expected against a Fleury side that is always a formidable force on home turf, and Les Rouge et Bleu 's tactical approach remained unchanged: to hold onto the ball in order to impose their style of play on their opponents. Meanwhile, Les Lionnes looked to reduce the space available to the visitors in an attempt to catch them on the counter after winning back possession, but in the end, neither side got to enjoy the last laugh in this game of deceit.

Les Parisiennes dominated proceedings in every department, however, with Fabrice Abriel's players staying true to their DNA and launching attack after attack on Fleury's defensive third. On the quarter-hour mark, the aforementioned Katoto enjoyed the first chance of the game thanks to a pass from Geyoro, but the striker's shot across goal missed its target. The encounter then balanced itself out somewhat, and it wasn't until the end of the first half that the play began to become stretched, although ex-Paris keeper Constance Picaud was alert enough to stop Karchaoui's effort in the 38th minute.

While they searched for space in the final third, Les Parisiennes needed to show the same discipline at the other end of the pitch, and it is certainly worth underlining that, led by a hard-working and committed rearguard, they never faltered in their defensive duties. When the hosts did manage to catch the Paris backline out through an Ewelina Kamczyk shot just after the interval, Mary Earps was able to earn her side a slice of luck by tipping it onto the crossbar.

Fabrice Abriel's players kept up their efforts to break the deadlock right until the end, but Tara Elimbi Gilbert (63'), Romée Leuchter (84') and Jade Le Guilly (85') were all unable to find a way past their former teammate Picaud, who pulled off multiple saves in a bid to hold onto her clean sheet. Despite their 13 shots and 65% possession, it was to be a frustrating outcome for Les Rouge et Bleu, who just lacked that clinical touch in their final ball.

At the end of a hotly contested Île-de-France derby, then, Paris Saint-Germain's women were forced to settle for a goalless draw, although it was an enlightening opening test of 2025, a year that is likely to be another busy one for Les Parisiennes. Their next assignment is a trip to third-tier outfit Croix Blanche Angers in the last 32 of the Coupe de France Féminine on Sunday, before they return to league action with a top-of-the-table clash against Olympique Lyonnais on 18th January.