Without Messi and with stars erased, PSG play poorly and lose to Monaco

Paris Saint-Germain visited Monaco this Sunday and was defeated 3-0, in a game valid for the French Championship. Despite the setback, the team remains in the lead of the tournament, with 65 points, 15 ahead of the second place. Monaco, in seventh, reached 44 points and approached the fight for a spot in European competitions.

Monaco started the match by putting pressure on PSG, who couldn’t escape the struggle. Just 5 minutes into the match, the home team forced goalkeeper Donnarumma to make a good save.

Monaco’s pressure continued until the 24th minute, when Fofana advanced down the right and crossed to Ben Yedder. At first, the striker played with a kettle and opened the scoring.

The Parisians responded with Neymar shortly thereafter. The Brazilian had the opportunity to hit a free kick at the entrance of the area, but the charge was saved by goalkeeper Nubel.

At 43, Mauricio Pochettino’s team was back in danger. This time, the French Mbappé cut the marker and launched Hakimi, who invaded the area and kicked across, but saw the finish being once again clapped by the opposing archer.

Paris Saint-Germain came back better for the second half and had a great opportunity after six minutes. Neymar found a beautiful pass for Mbappé, who dribbled the goalkeeper, but hit weakly and failed to score.

Despite the improvement, the team suffered again in defense and saw Monaco extend the score, in the 23rd minute. The team pulled a counterattack and, after a good offensive plot, the ball stopped at the feet of the German Volland, who just took it away from the goalkeeper.

The Monegasques scored again in the 39th minute. The team recovered the ball and left in a quick transition, but Volland was brought down by Kimpembe inside the area and the referee awarded the penalty. Frenchman Ben Yedder took a bad shot and Donnaruma even defended, but did not prevent the ball from entering the goal.

Blacked out, the late Mbappé and Neymar could not lead a reaction from the Parisian team, which has four consecutive defeats away from their domains. The Brazilian was even substituted in the final stretch of the second half.

PSG’s next commitment is against Lorient, on April 3, after the FIFA date.