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Poised to pick up their third consecutive win in Ligue 1, defending champions Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) traveled to Lille for their matchday three commitment on Sunday night (August 21).
Christophe Galtier’s side ran circles around Paulo Fonseca’s men, cruising to an emphatic 7-1 win at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy. Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Lionel Messi, and Achraf Hakimi were on the scoresheet for the 10-time French champions.
PSG hit the ground running against Lille on Sunday night, with Mbappe finding the back of the net after only eight seconds of play. With the goal, the Frenchman became the joint-record holder for scoring the quickest goal in Ligue 1 history, equalling former Caen forward Michel Rio's record (vs Cannes in 1992).
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Lille came close to leveling the scoreline four minutes later, with Jonathan Bamba finding himself in space on the edge of the Parisian box. Unfortunately, his effort was tame and went straight to PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Paris Saint-Germain doubled their tally through Messi in the 27th minute, with the Argentine linking up with Nuno Mendes to score his third goal of the Ligue 1 campaign.
12 minutes later, Hakimi joined the party, combining seamlessly with Neymar and applying a cool finish from a rather tight angle. PSG buried the game in the 43rd minute, scoring another brilliant team goal. Neymar latched on to Messi’s deflected through ball, steadied himself, and slotted his effort into the near post.
Paris Saint-Germain came charging out of the gate in the second half and scored their fourth goal of the night in the 52nd minute. Capitalizing on a defensive mixup, Hakimi got in control of the ball outside the box and found Neymar with a clever offload.
The Brazilian made no mistake, beating Leo Jardim from close range. A couple of minutes later, Lille got themselves a consolation goal through Bamba, who scored from the rebound after his initial attempt was saved by Donnarumma.
Instead of being pegged back by Lille’s goal, PSG bounced back with confidence and came close to restoring their advantage through Messi and Vitinha. Jardim saved the Argentine’s attempt while the Portuguese failed to hit the target from close range. Paris’ sixth goal of the night finally arrived in the 66th minute, courtesy of a thumping finish by Mbappe.
The goal completely took the wind out of Lille’s sails as they eagerly waited for the full-time whistle to blow. Three minutes before the 90, Mbappe pulled Paris further ahead, applying a thunerous finish to force Jardim to fetch the ball from his goal for the seventh time on Sunday.
Surprisingly, Lille ended the match with more shots on target than Paris (10 vs 9) but their finishing was simply not up to the mark.
Here are five PSG superstars who stood out in their emphatic 7-1 success over Lille on Ligue 1 matchday three:
#5 Gianluigi Donnarumma
Contrary to what the scoreline suggests, PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma had a busy night under the bar on Sunday. The Italian was called into action time and time again, and apart from a sloppy clearance that resulted in Lille’s only goal, he did quite well.
The former AC Milan star made a whopping eight saves against Lille, with seven of those coming from inside the box. He also accurately delivered three of five long balls, had a high claim, and performed a sweeping action, charging out of his box.
#4 Achraf Hakimi
PSG right-back Achraf Hakimi was in superb form on Sunday night. He combined ever so well with Neymar in the 39th minute to carve out some space and finish from a tight angle.
Seven minutes into the second half, he returned the favor by winning the ball just outside Lille’s box and finding Neymar in an inviting position on the left. The Brazil international, who was helped along by Mbappe’s dummy, comfortably beat Jardim from close range.
Against Lille, Hakimi also made two key passes, completed a cross, won five ground duels, and attempted four tackles. It was a complete performance from arguably the best right-back in the division.
#3 Lionel Messi
PSG superstar Lionel Messi operated behind Mbappe and Neymar on Sunday night, making the most of his creativity to bring his teammates into play. He set up Mbappe’s eight-second opener with a brilliant through ball over the top.
Messi then combined effortlessly with Mendes to score a smashing goal in the 27th minute. Direct goal contributions aside, Messi impressed with his dribbling, chance creation, and long-range distribution.
Against Lille, Messi attained 79.7% passing accuracy (47 completed passes), played four key passes, accurately delivered two crosses and four long balls, and completed two of three dribbles. The Barcelona record goalscorer also won four ground duels and attempted a tackle.
#2 Kylian Mbappe
Kylian Mbappe scored once in the 5-2 win over Montpellier (August 13), but it was his apparent on-field fallout with Neymar (over a penalty) that made all the headlines. The 2018 World Cup winner needed to set the record straight on Sunday, and he did so in the best possible manner, scoring a superb hat-trick.
Mbappe latched on to Messi’s lobbed through ball and applied a composed finish to score just eight seconds into the match. He added two more goals in the second half, combining with Neymar on both occasions.
In the 66th minute, Neymar took out several opposition players with his customary fancy footwork before laying the ball on a plate for the no. 7, who confidently finished from close range. 21 minutes later, they combined again, with Neymar placing a sumptuous through ball in Mbappe’s path for him to cut in, score, and complete his hat-trick.
The hat-trick hero also played two key passes, completing four of five dribbles and winning six of nine ground duels. Every aspect of Mbappe’s game was superb on Sunday, but it was his chemistry with Neymar which deservedly stole the show.
#1 Neymar
Mbappe may have scored a superb hat-trick, but it was Neymar who stood out the most in Paris’ latest triumph. The forward impressed with his footwork, dropped deep to fetch the ball, worked hard without it, and made five goal contributions.
Neymar assisted Hakimi following a clever exchange, set up Mbappe’s second goal with a brilliant through ball, and then helped Mbappe seal his hat-trick with a curling low cross. Apart from three assists, the former Barcelona man scored two great goals on either side of halftime to take the game away from the hosts.
In addition to the goal contributions, Neymar played four key passes, won three ground duels, blocked a shot, and attempted two tackles.
