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Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) left it late once again as Lille put on a fight at the Parc des Princes on Friday night. The defending champions were unwilling to let their form hand PSG an easy win and ensured the Ligue 1 leaders struggled to earn the points.
Jonathan David handed Lille a much-deserved lead in the 30th minute after some beautiful football from the visiting side. The goal seemed set to be the only one of the game. But Marquinhos popped up in the box and scored the equalizer in the 74th minute.
Lille were playing with their backs to the walls, and it was clear they wanted to leave the stadium with at least one point. Angel di Maria had other plans as he linked up with Neymar on the edge of the box. He scored the winner in the 88th minute.
Here are PSG's 5 best players from the 2-1 win over Lille:
#5 - Idrissa Gana Gueye
Gueye was once again the stand-out performer in midfield with Marco Verratti out injured. The former Lille star was a rock in the PSG side as he helped them connect the defense with the attack.
PSG needed someone to run up and down the pitch, and Gini Wijnaldum was unable to keep up with the pace of the game. The Dutchman wants to play regularly, but his performances this season have been nowhere near good enough.
Gueye, on the other hand, was excellent in finding his teammates and finished the game with 93% pass success and three crucial tackles.
#4 - Presnel Kimpembe
Not the best game for Presnel Kimpembe, but the Frenchman did manage to shine. He was often out of position but was helped by Danilo Pereira, who sat back when the defender moved forward.
The performance today from the defender was more about carrying the ball forward than his defensive display, as Lille could get past with a lot. He could have done a lot better in stopping the visiting side from entering the box. But luckily none of the moves he was at fault for resulted in goals.
#3 - Neymar
Lionel Messi and Neymar were expected to be the stand-out performers today, but the Argentine was taken off at half-time. The Brazilian played the whole game and even managed to set up the match-winning goal.
Just like Kimpembe, the game was not Neymar's best as his passes were often intercepted, and he was stopped a lot while trying to dribble too. He finished the game with 83% pass success, four dribbles completed out of nine, and two shots at goal – only one on target.
#2 - Marquinhos
If not for Marquinhos, PSG would have been out of the game before halftime. The Brazilian captained his club once again and put in a performance that did not go unnoticed.
Marquinhos was able to cut the passing lanes with ease and was often left to do all the work on his own as Kimpembe was marking forward with the ball. Kehrer's introduction released some pressure from the Brazilian as Dagba too was out of position most of the time.
The goal was a much-deserved one for the Brazilian as he was working hard to get his team back in the game. Safe to say, without Marquinhos on the pitch today, PSG were not walking away with the three points.
The center-back managed to end the game with 96% pass success, three aerial duels won, and also had two shots at goal!
#1 - Angel di Maria
While all eyes were set on the other Argentine in the PSG side, Angel di maria stole the show tonight. The former Real Madrid man scored a goal and made an assist to help his side defeat the current Ligue1 champions Lille.
With Kylian Mbappe injured, Di Maria got another chance to play on the right-wing, with Lionel Messi playing as the striker. It gave him the freedom to cut inside a lot, but he could not link up well with the former Barcelona star in the first half.
Once Messi was taken off for Mauro Icardi, Di Maria started to shine brighter. He was the focal point of almost all their attacks and was linking up well.
In the 74th minute, he drifted to the left flank, made a good run into the box, and was found by Neymar. He held his nerves and chipped in a beautiful ball to Marquinhos at the far post, and PSG pulled level.
Just minutes before the final whistle, Di Maria was once again on the ball. He played a quick 1-2 with Neymar to get into the Lille box, this time from the right side. The box was cramped, but the Argentine somehow managed to get a foot to the ball and squeeze in the winner. This helped PSG go 10 points clear of Lens at the top of the Ligue 1 table, who sit 2nd with a game in hand.
