At the Parc des Princes, few gave Liverpool much of a chance. In the midst of a dreadful season marked by constant defeats and underperforming key players, Liverpool arrived to face a PSG side rejuvenated after its emphatic triumph over Chelsea in the round of 16. To avoid suffering the same waves they endured against Manchester City in the FA Cup quarterfinals, Liverpool lined up with a very defensive setup, aiming above all not to leave themselves exposed. With a back three of Gomez, Van Dijk, and Konaté, Liverpool relied on their wing-backs, Kerkez and Frimpong, to support the duo of Wirtz and Ekitike.
Unfortunately, this plan exposed Liverpool to PSG’s technical quality and their ability to manipulate defensive blocks. PSG drew Liverpool in through the movements of players like Vitinha and Dembélé, dropping deeper to force the Reds out of position. The result was clear: Liverpool were sliced open, leaving their defenders isolated in one-on-one situations against PSG’s wingers.
Konaté struggled to deal with Kvaratskhelia, which exposed the left side. Constant positional rotations left Liverpool looking disorganized, and during one of these sequences, Doué found himself on the left, cut inside onto his right foot, and struck. The ball, deflected by Gravenberch, ended up in Mamardashvili’s net.
PSG then had chances to make it 2-0, notably through Doué and Dembélé. Paris played well but lacked efficiency in front of goal, and the same pattern continued in the second half. Numerous chances to extend the lead were wasted—until the second goal finally arrived. Found by a sublime pass from Neves, Kvaratskhelia showcased his technique to score a brilliant goal.
PSG were later denied a penalty, and Dembélé even struck the post.
In the end, it almost felt frustrating for PSG given how dominant they were. Liverpool barely existed in this match, with nothing going their way. It’s hard to see the Reds troubling PSG in the return leg at Anfield.
