PSG was rocking at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening.
After a close first half, Les Parisiens turned it on in the second. Goals from Presnel Kimpembe (who was lucky to still be on the pitch) and Kylian Mbappé both assisted by Angel Di Maria sealed a 2-0 away victory, which will be vital to PSG for the second match of the tie. Without Edinson Cavani and Neymar, PSG strolled through in Manchester.
By an odd quirk in this universe in which we live, four of the best footballers on the planet — in particular, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar — were born on the same day of the year: February 5.
Four #UCL heroes celebrate their birthdays today!
Cristiano Ronaldo (34)
Carlos Tévez (35)
Gheorghe Hagi (54)
Neymar (27)
You’ve heard this before: A broken foot is threatening to prematurely end Neymar’s club season, and he could be facing a race for fitness ahead of a major international tournament.
Last season, Neymar sustained a crack to the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot during a match against Marseille on Feb. 25. The injury was worse than first expected, required surgery and Neymar missed PSG’s Champions League Round of 16 return leg against Real Madrid before sitting out the rest of the season.
A lot of people don’t like Neymar.
I get that — he went overboard with the theatrics at last summer’s World Cup.
But what Strasbourg's Anthony Gonçalves said after yet another Neymar injury crosses the line more than any Neymar dive. It’s dangerous territory, something that reflects a societal issue as well.
In the soccer world, one of the best sights for sore eyes is the return of the Champions League.
Sometimes, watching Champions League teams playing league cup matches against weak opposition can be really dull after a while. For example, Manchester City’s 9-0 drubbing of Burton Albion a few weeks ago. In a lot of ways, European soccer without Champions League becomes kind of monotonous. At some point between the last Champions League group stage match and the start of the Round of 16, soccer fans will be wondering when the tournament will start up again.
A meeting between runaway Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain and last-place Guingamp went exactly as you’d expect on Saturday with the Parisian side romping to a 9-0 victory. (Fun fact: Guingamp has scored 16 goals all season, so PSG recorded more than half that total in just one match.)
Maybe the trip to Qatar was a good thing for PSG, if this Neymar sombrero in the opening 11 minutes was anything to go by, not to mention the ridiculous amount of goals that followed.
Paris Saint-Germain crushed last-place Guingamp 9-0 at the Parc des Princes on Saturday. Kylian Mbappé and Edinson Cavani both had hat tricks. Neymar came close to a hat trick with two goals, but his first strike may have been the best of the lot.
While most clubs across continental Europe have returned from their winter sojourns to warmer climes, Paris Saint-Germain has been in Doha this week for its Qatar Tour 2019.
Given the club’s Qatari ownership, it’s no surprise the club would visit the small but wealthy country, providing plenty of weird interview opportunities where Neymar can tell everyone that 18-year-old American Tim Weah will be the next great striker.
Since 2013, the CIES Football Observatory has annually been releasing a list of the top 100 valued footballers from Europe’s “Big-5” leagues. It’s a fascinating concept because rather than just saying “Messi is the best, he’s No. 1. Ronaldo is second-best, he’s No.