DOUE INSPIRES PSG COMEBACK FROM TWO DOWN TO BEAT MONACO 3-2 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PLAY-OFF
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Paris Saint-Germain recovered from a disastrous start to defeat AS Monaco 3-2 in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League knockout phase play-off tie at the Stade Louis II on Tuesday.
United States forward Folarin Balogun stunned the visitors by opening the scoring after just 55 seconds, heading in from close range off a cross by Aleksandr Golovin. Balogun struck again in the 18th minute after a quick exchange with Maghnes Akliouche, finishing past goalkeeper Matvei Safonov to put Monaco 2-0 ahead.
PSG’s problems deepened when Vitinha had a penalty saved by Philipp Koehn after Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was fouled in the box by Wout Faes. Shortly after, last year’s Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele was forced off with an injury before the half-hour mark.
However, Dembele’s replacement, Desire Doue, proved decisive. Barely two minutes after coming on, Doue controlled a pass from Bradley Barcola and fired a low left-footed shot into the far corner to pull one back.
The equaliser arrived four minutes before halftime when a Doue effort was parried by Koehn, allowing Achraf Hakimi to collect the loose ball and score.
Monaco’s hopes suffered a major blow early in the second half as Golovin was sent off following a VAR review for a challenge on Vitinha. With a numerical advantage, PSG took control, and in the 67th minute, Warren Zaire-Emery set up Doue to score his second of the night and complete the turnaround.
The dramatic result keeps the tie finely poised ahead of next Wednesday’s return leg in Paris, but Luis Enrique’s side will now be favourites to secure a place in the last 16 in front of their home supporters.
The winners of the tie will face either FC Barcelona or Chelsea FC in the next round.
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