A Vitinha inspired Paris triumph over Spurs!
Men's football•
Led by the irrepressible Vitinha, Paris Saint-Germain overcame Tottenham in a spectacular 5-3 Champions League triumph at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday!
Three weeks after suffering a first defeat of the European campaign against Bayern Munich (1-2), Paris Saint-Germain returned to the Champions League and the Parc des Princes for another clash, this time against Tottenham, on MD5 of the league phase. Still unbeaten in the competition, the English side had no intention of being overwhelmed by the incredible atmosphere inside the Parc at kick-off.
But it was Paris who made the better start, led by Fabian Ruiz, who gave the visitors a scare with a shot from 20 metres out (8'). Ten minutes later, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia found himself on the end of a long spell of Parisian possession, but his shot flirted with the wrong side of Guglielmo Vicario's post (18'). The capital club increased the pressure, and Warren Zaïre-Emery tested the opposition goalkeeper with a shot from a brilliant pass by Vitinha (20').
And yet, it was Tottenham who, against the run of play, opened the scoring through a Richarlison header from close range (0–1, 35'). Les Rouge et Bleu got back into the game just before half-time thanks to a superb strike from Vitinha, which flew into the top corner from outside the box (1-1, 45').
After the break, the London side once again showed their clinical finishing, retaking the lead through Randal Kolo Muani (1-2, 50'), before Vitinha equalised for a second time, this time with his left foot, sending the Parc into raptures (2-2, 53')!
After Viti, it was the turn of his midfield teammates to shine: after winning the ball back high up the pitch, João Neves backheeled to Fabian Ruiz, who beat Vicario with a left-foot finish (3-2, 59'). Paris had the lead for the first time in the match, and Luis Enrique's men had no intention of giving it up. From a corner taken from the left, Willian Pacho took advantage of a scramble in the English box to fire home from close range, sending the Parc into a frenzy (4-2, 65').
Spurs, who had been struggling, thought they were back in the game when Randal Kolo Muani scored again to reduce the deficit (4-3, 72'), but it was not to be. The man of the match was Vitinha, and the Portuguese international proved it once again by converting a penalty that he himself had won (5-3, 76')! Paris's victory was sealed, and Lucas Hernandez's sending-off at the end of the match did nothing to change that (90+3') as the European champions returned to winning ways in the Champions League.
Paris est magique!