Stade Rennais came close to a huge blow against PSG, this Sunday at the Parc des Princes, during the 23rd day of Ligue 1 (1-1). But the Bretons conceded the equalizer in money time after a penalty awarded to Gonçalo Ramos for a foul by Steve Mandanda. An arbitration decision that the visitors have difficulty digesting.
For a handful of seconds. Stade Rennais almost achieved a huge performance by winning on PSG’s pitch this Sunday, during the 23rd day of Ligue 1. But after leading for a long time thanks to a sublime goal from Amine Gouiri, the visitors conceded the equalizer after added time (1-1). Steve Mandanda was penalized with a penalty for contact with Gonçalo Ramos in the area. The Portuguese striker himself took charge of transforming into force (90+7th), to snatch a draw. A particularly cruel scenario for the Bretons.
“It’s horrible because we had done everything necessary to win this match,” Mandanda reacted on Canal+ Foot. “To take this penalty like that, at the end… In addition, a decision uh… Afterwards, he well done. He pushed. When we look at the slow motion, he starts to fall even before contact with me. So it’s hard, we’re frustrated. But what’s weird is to draw a draw at Paris and being frustrated. That’s a good sign. It means we had a good match, that we’re moving forward and making progress.”
“That’s ‘big team penalties’”
The Rennes goalkeeper also spoke on Prime Video: “A lot of frustration, because we played an almost perfect match to win here. We were solid, clinical when we needed to be. We have a 2-0 lead and above all a penalty, for me, very contentious.”
In the process, Julien Stephan, the coach of the Ille-et-Vilaine club, did not hide his disappointment in the post-match conference: “The performance of the players, plus the way we take this penalty, frustrates us obviously. These are ‘big team penalties’ that, or in some stadiums, not everywhere (smile). It’s a shame. Because what the players did throughout the match would have deserved a victory. A decision in decided otherwise (…) I am very calm, very calm. I say things as I think them, with a lot of respect for everyone. I clearly underlined how proud the players should be and how much the collective performance certainly deserved another result.”