Paris Saint-Germain, led by captain and scorer Kylian Mbappé, qualified on Wednesday for the semi-finals of the Coupe de France, which it has not won since 2021, by eliminating Nice (3-1), which is sinking into crisis.
PSG has not won the Coupe de France since 2021, and winning the competition again is one of the club’s clearly stated objectives this season. For this, there will still be two matches to win, including the semi-final against Rennes at Parc on April 3.
Without succeeding in mastering all of its matches, Paris remains in the race to win all competitions, leader of Ligue 1 and also qualified for the quarter-final of the Champions League.
Luis Enrique’s men, who mastered the first thirty minutes before being more messy the next fifteen, took their revenge on the Aiglons.
At the start of the season, the Niçois won at the Parc des Princes (3-2), the last defeat for Paris SG in L1. A revenge also in the Coupe de France: in 2022 the Niçois eliminated PSG on penalties in the round of 16 of the competition.
Niçois Gaëtan Laborde scores against PSG in the Coupe de France, March 13, 2024 at the Parc des Princes / FRANCK FIFE / AFP
This time, the Azuréens did not resist and thus went on to their 6th match without a victory, the last victory dates back to the 8th final won against Montpellier at the beginning of February (4-1).
At the start of the match, the Parisians left nothing to the Niçois, completely passive, during the first thirty minutes. They got their foot on the ball, controlled everything and pressed perfectly when the Aiglons recovered it.
It was also thanks to a recovery from Warren Zaire-Emery that Kylian Mbappé, starter on the left side and captain, opened the scoring (1-0, 14th) after a superb one-two with Fabian Ruiz.
Well in his legs after being left on the bench on Sunday against Reims in L1, Mbappé, who scored his 7th goal in the Coupe de France this season in four matches, hit the post (25th), very close to the double. The Portuguese Gonçalo Ramos missed several times in front of goal (5th, 24th, 58th).
Lucas Beraldo buteur
Unlike Fabian Ruiz (2-0, 33rd), who took full advantage of a big mistake from Nice goalkeeper Marcin Bulka, passive like his teammates.
Everything seemed to bend and then Nice, non-existent until then, woke up as Paris faded away.
“I think it was the best 35 minutes I’ve seen,” Luis Enrique said after the match, because “we created a lot of chances and dominated the match perfectly during that period.”
“Then we conceded the goal in a strange way just after, we entered a period of doubt and the opponent regained confidence,” he added.
PSG defender Lucas Beraldo scores against Nice, March 13, 2024 at the Parc des Princes / FRANCK FIFE / AFP
Three minutes after the 2-0, Francesco Farioli’s players, beaten in all areas of the game at that time, returned to the score, after a breakthrough from Jérémie Boga, which Warren Zaire-Emery, right side on Wednesday, n couldn’t stop.
In the area, Gaëtan Laborde recovered a returned ball and adjusted Donnarumma (2-1, 37th). The Niçois, transformed by the goal, were also very close to equalizing (45+1, 55th).
Like the draw on Sunday against Reims (2-2), the Parisian defense was still too feverish and too easily taken, due in particular to the hybrid placement of Warren Zaire-Emery, which did not seem completely still master.
On the other side, in the left lane, Nuno Mendes, who is returning from a long injury, showed all his offensive qualities and his speed.
“I’m happy, after 11 months… We have to continue, I’m not in my best shape I think, but I’m coming back little by little,” explained the Portuguese after the match.
Restrained by Luis Enrique, always talkative in his technical zone, the Parisians controlled the game more after half-time. It was from a corner that they gave themselves some breathing room, thanks to Lucas Beraldo, alone at the far post and who scored his first goal with PSG (3-1, 60th).