Kvaratskhelia scores twice off bench as PSG rout Chelsea 5-2

PSG Overwhelm Chelsea 5-2 in Champions League First Leg as Kvaratskhelia Stars Off the Bench

Paris Saint-Germain scored three goals in the final 16 minutes to demolish Chelsea 5-2 in the first leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday, with substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia netting twice to put the defending European champions in firm control of the tie.espn

The result provided a measure of revenge for PSG, who were beaten 3-0 by Chelsea in last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium. It also left Chelsea facing a near-impossible task in the second leg at Stamford Bridge next week.nytimes

A Game of Two Halves

The first half was a breathless affair. Bradley Barcola opened the scoring in the 10th minute, controlling a knockdown from João Neves and firing past Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jørgensen. Chelsea responded through Malo Gusto in the 28th minute, finishing after an Enzo Fernández pass that Matvei Safonov should have saved. Ousmane Dembélé, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner making only his 15th start of the season, restored PSG’s lead five minutes before halftime with a slaloming run capped by a deflected finish.yahoo

Chelsea equalized again shortly before the hour mark when Pedro Neto cut back from the left for Fernández to strike first-time into the net. But the tie turned on a costly error from Jørgensen, whose careless pass was intercepted, allowing Vitinha to chip the ball into the unguarded goal in the 74th minute. From there, PSG were unstoppable. Kvaratskhelia, introduced as a substitute in the 62nd minute, hammered home a solo effort in the 86th minute before adding a fifth in stoppage time from an Achraf Hakimi assist.foxsports

Neto Apologizes for Ball Boy Shove

The match was also marred by an incident involving Chelsea’s Pedro Neto, who shoved a ball boy to the ground in stoppage time while trying to retrieve the ball quickly with his team trailing. The ball boy tumbled backward into an advertising board but appeared unharmed.espn

“I want to apologise to the ball boy. I already spoke with him,” Neto told TNT Sports after the match. “The emotions of the game with us losing, I want to pick up the ball, and I gave him a little push. I saw that I hurt him and straight away I apologised. I am not like this. I gave him my shirt because that cannot happen, so I am really, really sorry.”espn

PSG Send European Warning

ESPN noted that PSG finished the match with an expected goals figure of just 0.87, meaning their five goals represented one of the largest overperformances in Champions League knockout history. Luis Enrique’s side, who have endured an inconsistent season and hold only a slim lead over Lens in Ligue 1, appeared to rediscover the form that carried them to their maiden Champions League title last season, when they eliminated three Premier League clubs en route to lifting the trophy.espn

Chelsea, now managed by Liam Rosenborg, face the daunting prospect of overturning a three-goal deficit. Kvaratskhelia struck a confident tone afterward: “I believe we demonstrated our full potential today. We have to maintain this momentum.”mirror