Ligue 1

Mbappe scores twice but PSG slump to first defeat of season

September 15, 2023

In a surprising turn of events, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) suffered their first defeat of the Ligue 1 season, despite Kylian Mbappe’s impressive brace.

Nice emerged victorious with a score of 3-2 at the Parc des Princes on Friday, thanks in part to Terem Moffi’s double.

PSG found themselves trailing early in the first half when Moffi capitalized on a mistake by Mbappe and found the back of the net. However, the French striker made amends with a goal in the 30th minute. Nice regained the lead eight minutes into the second half through Gaetan Laborde, and Moffi added another goal to his tally.

Mbappe provided a glimmer of hope for the reigning French champions with a well-placed volley, but Nice held on to secure the victory.

Following this defeat, Luis Enrique’s PSG dropped to third place in the early-season standings with eight points from five games, one point behind the undefeated Nice, missing the opportunity to overtake Monaco at the top.

Before the match, the Parc des Princes bid farewell to Marco Verratti, who had spent 11 years at PSG before moving to Qatari club Al-Arabi. Messages from former teammates, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva, were displayed on the big screen, and Verratti was given a lap of honor around the pitch. Verratti had made 416 appearances for PSG, winning nine Ligue 1 titles and six French Cups but was unable to secure a Champions League title for the club.

Nice surprised PSG by taking the lead in the 21st minute, exploiting PSG’s defensive troubles. Mbappe, who had dropped deep into his own half to gain possession, committed a costly mistake, allowing Moffi to score with a shot that deflected off Milan Skriniar.

The visitors nearly doubled their lead when Khephren Thuram’s shot was expertly saved by PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. However, Mbappe soon made amends with a powerful goal from Achraf Hakimi’s assist, although the Nice goalkeeper, Marcin Bulka, couldn’t prevent it.

PSG began to dominate but narrowly avoided going into halftime behind when Jordan Lotomba missed a clear scoring opportunity.

Nice regained their lead in the 53rd minute as Moffi set up Laborde for a precise finish past Donnarumma. PSG continued to concede chances, and Moffi all but sealed the game with a composed finish from outside the box, taking advantage of PSG’s hesitant defense.

Mbappe displayed his acrobatic skills with a volley into the far corner after good work from substitute Randal Kolo Muani on his debut. However, Nice comfortably managed the closing moments of the match.

PSG must now regroup ahead of their Champions League group-stage opener against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday.