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Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) secured passage into the Champions League last 16 with a victory over Group H rivals Maccabi Haifa at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday night (October 25). Christophe Galtier’s men secured an emphatic 7-2 win in front of their fans on matchday five, with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe leading the charge, scoring a brace each.
Neymar and Carlos Soler each scored a goal, while Sean Goldberg added to Haifa’s misery with his own goal. Right-back Abdoulaye Seck was Haifa’s hero of the match, with him scoring a superb brace against the French champions.
The Israeli champions started brightly, applying pressure up top and hoping to unsettle the hosts. Their strategy worked initially, but soon enough, PSG found their footing and breached Haifa’s resistance. In the 19th minute, Mbappe and Messi linked up, with the latter scoring a superb curler to put his team ahead.
Mbappe and Neymar joined the party just past the half-hour mark, with the pair finding the back of the net superbly in the 32nd and 35th minutes, respectively. The visitors responded with a smart goal in the 38th minute, with Seck applying the finishing touch to a perfectly-worked free kick routine.
Messi, who kicked off proceedings in the 19th minute, restored PSG’s three-goal advantage in the 44th minute, evading a couple of defenders before curling the ball home in style.
Five minutes into the second half, Haifa doubled their pickings, with Frantzdy Pierrot setting up Seck for another header at the far post. Out of position, Gianluigi Donnarumma was convincingly beaten by his looping header.
Fourteen minutes after conceding, PSG hit back, with Mbappe finding the top-right corner of Joshua Cohen’s goal. Five minutes later, Goldberg bundled the ball into his own goal to send PSG four goals clear.
In the 76th minute, Messi narrowly missed his hat trick, with his shot from the near post clattering against the bar. Six minutes later, Messi turned provider, finding Soler with a clever cutback. The midfielder struck the ball first time, evading a sea of defenders to find the back of the net.
Haifa threatened PSG in bits and pieces, but never looked like stealing points off them. Here are five Parisian stars who made life difficult for the Israeli outfit on Tuesday night.
#5 Vitinha
PSG’s summer signing Vitinha ran the show in the middle of the park on Tuesday night. Stepping up in Marco Verratti’s absence (suspension), the Portuguese dictated the tempo, stretched play with his passes out wide, and rarely gave possession away.
Against Maccabi Haifa, Vitinha completed 48 passes (94.1% accuracy), delivered two accurate long balls, completed a dribble, and won three of four ground duels. He also attempted a tackle, made an interception, and drew a foul.
#4 Carlos Soler
Carlos Soler got his first goal for PSG on Tuesday. Coming on for Renato Sanches in the 68th minute, Soler scored the Parisians’ final goal of the match in the 84th minute. He received a pass on the edge of the D and slotted his first-time shot into the bottom corner. Soler’s passing was on point, he tracked back, and linked up well with PSG’s front three.
Soler made a key pass, played 21 accurate passes (95.5% accuracy), accurately delivered one cross, and won a ground duel. Additionally, he made an interception and attempted a tackle.
#3 Neymar
PSG no. 10 Neymar was not exactly at his scintillating best against Maccabi Haifa, but there were certainly more positives in his game than negatives. Ten minutes before halftime, Neymar applied a delectable chipped finish to triple his side’s advantage against the Israeli outfit. The Brazilian created multiple openings, carried the ball well, and linked up superbly with Mbappe and Messi.
On Champions League matchday five, Neymar played four key passes, created two big chances, delivered five accurate long balls, and completed a dribble. He also won five ground duels and drew four fouls.
Neymar marred his display by picking up a booking for dissent, which would force him to sit out the clash against Juventus on matchday six (accumulation of yellows).
#2 Kylian Mbappe
Kylian Mbappe was nearly unplayable against Maccabi Haifa on Tuesday. He terrorized the opponents with his runs, assisted both of Messi’s goals, and bagged a brace himself.
His first goal came in the 32nd minute, with him curling his shot past Cohen and into the back of the net. Mbappe doubled his tally in the 64th minute, dispatching another gem of a curler to find the far-top corner.
Apart from his goal contributions, the 2018 World Cup winner made five key passes, completed three dribbles, won five ground duels, and created two big chances.
#1 Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi was arguably the player of the match for PSG, finding himself at the heart of almost every encouraging passage of play. He kept the game ticking with his smart passes, claimed two assists, and scored two fine goals. Messi assisted Neymar and Soler’s goals, with the latter thoroughly demonstrating his quality.
The Argentine checked his run right at the last moment to lose Neta Lavi. He then played a square pass, picking out Soler on the edge of the area, who took care of the rest.
Messi’s first goal came in the 19th minute, with him curling his shot around Dylan Batubinsika to catch the keeper off guard. He completed his brace just before the break, dribbling away from two defenders and opening up space before squeezing his effort past Cohen and into the near-bottom corner.
Messi also hit the woodwork once, played four key passes, completed a dribble, and created two big chances against Haifa on Tuesday.
