PSG 2-1 Nice: 5 Hits and Flops as Lionel Messi and Mbappe secure a win for the Parisians | Ligue 1 2021-22

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) beat Nice 2-1 at the Parc des Princes on Saturday, October 1.

PSG started the game in a more composed manner and controlled the game in the opening exchanges. Lionel Messi landed the opening blow as he scored a brilliant free-kick close to the half-hour mark. Following that, PSG kept looking for a second but Nice managed to stay afloat.

Nice rebounded with a perfect reply following the restart as Gaetan Laborde slotted one past Gianluigi Donnarumma following a delicious pass from Youcef Atal into the box which managed to deceive both Marquinhos and Nordi Mukiele. PSG kept looking for the winner but Nice's organized structure made it hard for them to get the desired effect.

The Parisians found their lost spark through Kylian Mbappe, who came off the bench to score the winning goal of the game. The French international scored in the 83rd minute of the game following a brilliant pass from Mukiele to tuck one past Kapser Schmeichel. With this win, PSG have now amassed 25 points following nine games and remain two points ahead of second-placed Marseille.

On that note, here's a look at the five hits and flops from the game:

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#5 Hit: Gaetan Laborde (Nice)

Gaetan Laborde did not have much going his way as the back three of Nordi Mukiele, Marquinhos and Sergio Ramos had almost everything covered. But his persistence to keep finding spaces and exerting pressure was awarded as he caught the back-line napping on one occasion and punished them perfectly.

Laborde latched onto a tricky cross from Youcef Atal which skipped past the entire back-line of PSG. His goal sparked a ray of hope that Nice could salvage something out of the game.

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#5 Flop: Marquinhos (PSG)

Marquinhos was partly at fault for Nice's equalizer as his lapse in concentration and failure to judge the trajectory led to his side conceding a goal. Nordi Mukiele too was at fault but redeemed himself as he set up an assist for Kylian Mbappe's winner.

Marquinhos was reliable with his passing and made multiple recoveries throughout the game but looked shaky following the equalizer which caught him off guard.

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#3 Hit: Kylian Mbappe (Hit)

Kylian Mbappe came off the bench in the 59th minute of the game as he replaced Hugo Ekitike. The Frenchman scored the winning goal of the game as he coolly tapped one in from close range following some great work down the line by Nordi Mukiele.

Mbappe won two duels, made three recoveries, completed two dribbles and intercepted the ball once in his short stint off the bench. The 23-year-old completely instilled new form of energy into the squad following his arrival.

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#2 Flop: Dante (Nice)

Dante had a game to forget as nothing went his way throughout the game. The 38-year-old won none of the duels he contested as he lost six duels throughout the game. Moreover, he was dispossessed twice by the hosts.

Dante even received a yellow card as he cynically brought down Lionel Messi as the Argentine moved past Ross Barkley with ease. Following the incident, he had to be extra cautious and that somewhat restrained him. The Brazilian came up short and proved to be the weakest link in the five-man defense favored by Lucien Favre for the fixture.

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#1 Hit: Lionel Messi (PSG)

Lionel Messi shone for PSG once again.

Lionel Messi opened the scoring for the hosts as he scored a wonderful free-kick to beat Kasper Schmeichel. He curled one past Nice's wall to perfection. The Argentine international picked up from where he left off before the international break and gave PSG the break with a piece of magic.

Messi won seven duels, made four recoveries, completed five dribbles and created one chance throughout the game. La Pulga tried to make things happen on his own but lacked support higher up as even Neymar Jr. did not have the best day at work and struggled to leave his mark.