Paris Saint-Germain – somehow – stunned Atalanta with two late, late goals to snatch victory in their Champions League quarter final on Wednesday night.
A missed Neymar sitter aside, it was La Dea who were the better team in the opening period, as Mario Pašalić’s curled finish put them ahead on 26 minutes. It was time for the cavalry to come on in the second – namely Kylian Mbappe – but while the shots on target followed, Atalanta stood firm with some heroic defending and unfaltering determination.
That was until Marquinhos stabbed home on 90 minutes. Then, of all people, Stoke City legend Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting poked home in added time. Drama only the Champions League can produce.
Heartbreak for Atalanta. Ecstasy for PSG. Here are your player ratings.
Marco Sportiello (GK) – 7/10 – Saved everything he could. Could do nothing about either goal.
Rafael Toloi – (CB) – 9/10 – Was dealing with the threat of Sarabia very comfortably, and even when the cavalry came on he was a rock in defence with a carved brick for a head.
Mattia Caldara (CB) – 8/10 – When you shut out a team as free scoring as PSG, you must have done something right. Caldara was calm, composed, superb.
Berat Djimsiti (CB) – 7/10 – Did OK throughout but was taken off 60 minutes in to add fresh legs for the incoming Kylian Mbappe. Made sense.
Hans Hateboer (RWB) – 7/10 – Normally so reliable, the Dutchman was guilty of a few misplaced passes that put his side under unnecessary pressure. Those minor mistakes were frustrating, since he did everything else so well.
Marten de Roon (CM) – 8/10 – A machine. Pressing, hounding, getting back, the lot. He knows his role so well, as if the manager is talking to him via an earpiece. So aware at all times.
Remo Freuler (CM) – 8/10 – As with his midfield partner, Frueler knows where to be at every moment, cutting out passing lanes and shielding the defence.
Robin Gosens (LWB) – 8/10 – One of the best left backs around at the moment. Jurgen Klopp hailed his ‘mentality monsters’, which means Gosens must be a ‘fitness behemoth’. Outstanding stamina.
Papu Gomez (AM) – 9/10 – When you say a player is ‘all over the place’ it tends to imply something unfortunate. Not in the case of Gomez. The Spanish playmaker was picking up space all night, until he was sadly taken off with half an hour to go.
Mario Pašalić (AM) – 8/10 – For the goal alone he deserves big marks, but just as with the rest of the team, Pašalić worked tirelessly in both defence and attack.
Duván Zapata (ST) – 7/10 – His role was more tactical than anything, as the striker was rarely ever found in central areas. He was tasked with covering full-backs and running the channels. Did it very well, mind.
Ruslan Malinovskiy – 6/10
José Luis Palomino – 8/10
Luis Muriel – 6/10
Timothy Castagne – 6/10
Jacopo Da Riva – 6/10
Keylor Navas (GK) – 8/10 – Made a number of good saves throughout that prevented his side going even further behind before the late turnaround. Arguably PSG’s best player on the night.
Thilo Kehrer (RB) – 5/10 – Against the threat of Gosens and Zapata, Kehrer struggled to keep up to the pace and was caught out of possession a few times.
Thiago Silva (CB) – 6/10 – His PSG career lives to fight another day – just about – though the Brazilian seemed laboured throughout the game.
Presnel Kimpembe (CB) – 7/10 – Similar story to his central defensive partner, though Kimpembe played a few more neat forward passes compared to his experienced teammate.
Juan Bernat (LB) – 6/10 – Was lucky to avoid a sending off with Anthony Taylor opting against dishing out a second yellow card. Otherwise, he failed to deal with the high press that Atalanta implemented.
Ander Herrera (CM) – 5/10 – Of the three it was Herrera who forayed forward the most, but his drives into the final third rarely came to much, with Neymar tasked with being the creative force.
Marquinhos (CM) – 6/10 – Was shielding the back four with no intention of bursting forward, but he occupied a similar role to the rest of the midfield three…simply existing. Still, he came up with the vital equaliser.
Idrissa Gueye (CM) – 5/10 – Didn’t do anything necessarily wrong, but likewise didn’t do much right. He passed a few times, never incisive or threatening. Was just, sort of, there.
Pablo Sarabia (RW) – 4/10 – Sarabia needs to hit the weights. Of course strength is not his….strength, but he was shrugged off the ball far too easily on a number of occasions. Very poor.
Mauro Icardi (ST) – 3/10 – We all know Mauro Icardi is a top drawer striker, so why didn’t he show that on Wednesday? Positionally he was all over the shop. Anonymous.
Neymar (LW) – 6/10 – He may have missed an absolute sitter early on, but it was Neymar who was front and centre for PSG throughout the tie, dropping deep to gather possession or drifting wide to affect play. Hate him or love him, he’s one supreme player. Shame he can’t put them away when it counts.
Kylian Mbappe – 8/10
Julian Draxler – 6/10
Leandro Paredes – 6/10
Sergio Rico – 6/10
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting – 7/10 – Who would have thought, eh?
