In excellent form, Les Rouge et Bleu dominated the match and found the solutions to beat Paris FC 3-0! Here's a look back at this crucial win for Paris Saint-Germain...
Paulo César said earlier in the week that he wanted to "react quickly to prepare for this huge clash". After losing the Coupe de France final to Paris FC in Calais, they had to find a solution to win this crucial match. To do so, Mary Earps started in goal, in front of a three-pronged defence consisting of Elisa De Almeida, Griedge Mbock and Paulina Dudek. Further forward, Jade Le Guilly and Océane Hurtré were positioned as wing-backs, while Grace Geyoro, Jackie Groenen and Sakina Karchaoui formed the Parisian midfield for the evening. Finally, Korbin Albert and Romée Leuchter were lined up in a new-look attacking duo.
One thing was certain: there was no time to waste in this derby! After a terible misunderstanding in the Paris FC defence, Romée Leuchter pounced and placed the ball perfectly in the empty net (1-0, 1'). Our Parisiennes were in the lead and immediately took a psychological advantage! Moments later, Océane Hurtré came close to doubling the lead, but her shot went over the bar (5‘). After some impressive dribbling in the box, Romée Leuchter fired in a superb shot that hit the post (14’). The opposition had a few chances, particularly from set pieces, but the Paris Saint-Germain defence remained solid. It was an eventful first half, with 12 shots in total and, above all, Rouge et Bleu domination at the heart of the game. In the pouring rain, our players went into the dressing room in the lead, but nothing was decided yet!
The second half opened with an exceptional goal from Sakina Karchaoui, who conjured a flawless left-footed strike that left the Paris FC goalkeeper no chance (2-0, 54'). Paulo Cesar's players had had the better second-half chances up to that point, but the back of the net was proving somewhat elusive (67') and possession was largely in favour of the opposition. But then Romée Leuchter played a magnificent pass into the six-yard box and Korbin Albert scored Paris's third goal of the game (3-0, 89'), just desserts for all the attacking efforts made throughout the match!
As the final whistle blew, our Parisiennes, who played with great determination, secured a flawless victory against Paris FC. One year after qualifying for the championship final for the first time, Les Rouge et Bleues are back!
Another final against Lyon
Paris will face Olympique Lyonnais in the final at the Groupama Stadium at 21:00 on Friday 16 May - hopefully to write a new chapter in Paris Saint-Germain's history.