AC Milan 2-1 Paris Saint-Germain
Olivier Giroud’s historic 50th minute header sealed a vital 2-1 win as Milan get their revenge over Paris Saint-Germain two weeks after losing 3-0 at the Parc des Princes. Milan Skriniar opened the scoring with a header, before Leao swiftly cancelled it out with an acrobatic effort.
The first half saw a flurry of goal-mouth action as Les Parisiens raced into the lead through Milan Skriniar. The Slovak buried Marquinhos’ flick-on at the near post after Vitinha delivered from the corner. It was the former Inter Milan man’s first goal for Les Rouge et Bleu, and the defender’s third ever in the Champions League.
Luis Enrique’s side didn’t the lead for long, and after a driving strike from Olivier Giroud, it was Rafael Leao who reacted on the rebound with an acrobatic effort that Gianluigi Donnarumma couldn’t reach. It was Milan’s first goal of their UCL campaign, in a match they clearly needed to make a statement in.
With 24 shots on goal by the end of the first-half, it was an encounter that had ‘box-office’ written all over it. Kylian Mbappé really should have netted in the first period, but at each opportunity the France captain was either denied by Maignan or couldn’t find his final killer touch. Next up was Ousmane Dembélé, whose shot in the 26th minute rattled the bar – and PSG almost conceded from the following counter-attack via Giroud and Leao.
The second period began as intense as the first, with PSG starting to find some rhythm in holding the ball. However, it was without possession where Les Parisiens were struggling. Milan started to overun PSG’s three central midfield players, and then managed to find the net in the 50th minute through Olivier Giroud. The Frenchman rose highest with a powerful header, gladly provided with the pinpoint cross via France teammate Théo Hernandez. It was a goal which saw Giroud become the oldest French goalscorer in the Champions League.
Enrique ran the changes in midfield, with Kang-In Lee and Fabian Ruiz coming on to try and help make a difference. Yet, PSG struggled to make inroads and continue their attacking progress made in the first period – not making another shot until the 68th minute. As the half wore on, it looked as if PSG were crawling back into the shell of their performance against Newcastle. Kang-In Lee came close in the closing phases of play, the South Korean’s low striker bouncing off the bar after a finger-tip save from Maignan.
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN PLAYER RATINGS
Gianluigi Donnarumma, 5 – The Italian was perhaps perturbed on his return to action in front of his former club’s fans, who booed and threw the now infamous “Dollarumma” bills at him before kick-off. Whilst he was quick to save from Giroud, the Italian was unable to stop Leao’s acrobatic strike which flew straight in the direction of Donnarumma. He redeemed himself however in the second half, with some fine stops to prevent PSG’s situation from worsening.
Lucas Hernandez, 4
Milan Skriniar, 4
Marquinhos, 3 – Not the ideal away match for the Brazilian in Europe once again. Whilst he earned an assist to put PSG ahead via the corner, he was lacklustre in his defensive display for both the goals scored by Milan.
Achraf Hakimi, 4
Vitinha, 5
Manuel Ugarte, 4
Warren Zaïre-Emery, 5
Kylian Mbappé, 3 – One of the France captain’s weaker displays in the Champions League for Paris Saint-Germain in recent memory. The Bondy-born attacker was on the end of multiple opportunities to put the game to bed in the first half, but he lacked his trademark killer touch – very much in the same vein as his performance against Newcastle.
Randal Kolo Muani, 4
Ousmane Dembéle, 5
Others: Fabian Ruiz, 4 Kang-In Lee, 4
SELECTED MILAN PLAYER RATINGS
Mike Maignan, 6
Théo Hernandez, 7
Olivier Giroud, 7 – The eternal goalscorer adds another memorable goal to his memory book. With his header in the 50th minute, he became the oldest Frenchman to score in the Champions League at the age of 37 years and 38 days.
Rafael Leao, 7 – He was Milan’s most impressive player at the Parc des Princes two weeks ago, and stepped up another gear at home to PSG this time around. Speed, intensity, and trickery defined his 80-odd minutes played against Les Parisiens, with an acrobatic effort to cap it all off.
GFFN | George Boxall