Three days after qualifying for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 against Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain returned to Ligue 1 action with a trip to Le Havre on Saturday for Matchday 24.
With Lens held to a draw in Strasbourg on Friday evening, it was a great opportunity to keep up the pressure at the top of the table. Facing a Normandy side in need of a rebound, Luis Enrique switched up his starting eleven, notably with Dro starting in midfield alongside Viti and Warren. Hernandez started at left-back, with Zabarnyi and Pacho in the centre and Hakimi on the right. Up front, Lee joined Kvara and Barcola, who started as a striker.
The Parisians wasted no time in turning up the heat, with their first big chance coming early in the game. Lee delivered a corner kick that Kvara headed towards goal, beating Mory Diaw but Zouaoui was on the line to save his team (2'). Les Rouge et Bleu were starting to dominate the game, with a lot of overlapping runs, but the home side weathered the storm. They then threatened themselves with a long-range free kick. The ball hung in the box and Safonov pulled off a spectacular save with his right hand, but the move was ruled out for offside against Le Havre (11').
The classic pattern was taking shape, with the opposition regrouping, waiting and hoping to make the most of counter-attacks. But Paris' technical quality made the difference throughout the first half, and the Normans eventually cracked. Lee, who was very lively, got the ball on his left foot and sent in a cross that found Barcola's head, beating Diaw to open the scoring (0-1, 37').
Moments later, Dro thought he had scored his first goal for PSG from a pass by Hakimi, but the latter was ultimately offside at the start of the move (41').
It was more of the same at the start of the second half, with Kvaratskhelia once again firing the first shot, using his secret weapon to cut inside and unleash a powerful strike that narrowly missed Mory Diaw's top corner (47'). The Georgian was unlucky again a few moments later when he hit the outside of Diaw's post after the home side's defence failed to clear the ball properly (50'). Without adding to the scoring, the Parisians risked being pegged back. But that was without counting on Safonov, who was alert and made a wonderful save from Soumaré, who had managed to turn and find himself in a good position in the heart of the Rouge et Bleu's box (54').
It was time to seal the three points, but Diaw responded to the Russian goalkeeper's saves with his own. He made three incredible saves against Mendes, Mbaye and Doué (66', 78', 79'), the last one from a penalty. But Matvey had the last word, bravely repelling the Normandy side's final attempts. Twice from corners, the Parisian goalkeeper punched the ball away as it floated dangerously, before completely blocking the danger on a final scramble by Le Havre, before the referee blew the final whistle (90'+4).
It was a narrow victory in the end, which probably deserved a different scoreline, but it still sees the capital club take a four-point lead at the top of the table before embarking on what promises to be a completely crazy month of March.
