Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday recovered from a shambolic start as Desire Doue inspired a comeback from two goals down to beat AS Monaco 3-2 in the principality in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League playoff.
US star Folarin Balogun opened the scoring after just 55 seconds and found the net again on 18 minutes to put Monaco in control against their French Ligue 1 rivals at the Stade Louis II.
Vitinha then missed a chance for the reigning European champions to reduce the deficit when he had a penalty saved and last year’s Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele came off injured before the half-hour mark, but his replacement Doue sparked the comeback.
Photo: Reuters
He scored and then helped set up Achraf Hakimi for the equalizer just before halftime, and Monaco then had Aleksandr Golovin sent off right at the start of the second half.
Doue then got the winner on 67 minutes.
“He is an incredible player and a different player. I am very pleased for him because he deserved it,” PSG head coach Luis Enrique told broadcaster Canal Plus. “There is pressure on us to win and we like that pressure, but there are difficult moments in games that are hard to overcome.”
The result keeps the tie alive going into the return leg in Paris on Wednesday next week, but PSG are now strong favorites to seal a place in the last 16.
They came into the game having been knocked off top spot in the French league last weekend following a defeat at Stade Rennais, with RC Lens replacing them at the summit.
However, they are a huge 20 points clear of Monaco, who find themselves languishing in eighth due to an inability to put together a consistent run of form.
Nevertheless, Monaco notably held Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus at home during the league phase, and also won 1-0 at home to PSG in Ligue 1 in November last year.
This time they went in front as Balogun headed in from close range from a Golovin cross for the fastest goal ever conceded in a European tie by PSG.
Monaco were in dreamland as they doubled their advantage when Balogun played a quick one-two with Maghnes Akliouche before running through to finish past goalkeeper Matfei Safonov.
A shock result appeared on the cards, with PSG’s title seemingly very much on the line, all the more so when Vitinha’s penalty was saved by Philipp Koehn after Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was brought down by Wout Faes.
That was the fourth penalty out of their past five in the Champions League that PSG had failed to convert, and things got worse for them when Dembele — who had been a doubt and has had an injury-hit season — had to come off.
Yet his withdrawal really turned out to be a blessing, as Doue entered the fray and had a devastating impact.
The standout performer in PSG’s 5-0 demolition of Inter in last season’s final had been on the pitch barely two minutes when he controlled Bradley Barcola’s pass in the penalty area before smashing a left-foot shot low into the far corner.
The leveler then came four minutes from halftime when a Doue shot was parried by Koehn, with Hakimi controlling the loose ball before applying the finish.
Monaco’s grip on the game was really gone within three minutes of the restart as Russian playmaker Golovin saw red following a video assistant referee check of his challenge on Vitinha, granting PSG the extra man.
The visitors took advantage as Warren Zaire-Emery laid the ball off for Doue to score his second of the night and make it 3-2 midway through the second half.
“I just did my job. We are pleased because the most important thing in games like these is just to win,” Doue told Canal Plus.
PSG will hope to finish off the tie next week, with the winners facing either Barcelona or Chelsea in the next round.
It is a big ask now for Monaco, although they will likely be relieved to be heading to Paris with just a one-goal deficit after playing for so long with 10 men.
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