After a well-deserved winter break, Paris Saint-Germain returned to Ligue 1 to close out the first half of the season in the top flight on matchday 17. And what better way to start 2026 than with a derby against Paris FC at the Parc des Princes, which was heated to fever pitch despite sub-zero temperatures at kick-off. The capital club quickly took control of the game, but had to contend with a newly promoted side that was confident in its strengths and defensive organisation.
In the first half, neither Nuno Mendes (16', 29') nor Ousmane Dembélé (23', 32') managed to threaten Kevin Trapp's goal, thanks to the opposition's defence who were quick to intervene. Désiré Doué was very lively and gave his opponents a headache, but the Parisian No. 14 also failed to hit the target (40'). However, the pressure from Les Rouge et Bleu increased as the minutes ticked by, and the French international came back with a powerful shot just under the bar, leaving the German goalkeeper with no chance and allowing Paris Saint-Germain to open the scoring in the 45th minute (1-0)!
The visitors responded immediately, with a penalty generously awarded to Alimami Gory, then converted by Willem Geubbels (1-1, 49'). However, this did not cause the Parisians to waver, and they quickly regained the lead through Ousmane Dembélé, whose shot was deflected by Moustapha Mbow and caught Kevin Trapp off guard (2-1, 53'). This time, PFC were really struggling. Stéphane Gilli's players didn't seem to have the resources to trouble Luis Enrique's side again, who were comfortably settled in the opposition's half.
After a strong performance on the left side, Nuno Mendes came close to scoring, but his attempt from a tight angle was saved by Trapp (67'). At the end of a match in which the Rouge and Bleu were never troubled, it was Paris Saint-Germain who had the last word and won the first derby of the season against PFC. The capital club thus began 2026 as it had ended 2025: with a win!
