PSG Rallies Past Strasbourg With Three Late Goals
STRASBOURG (Interstat) — Paris Saint-Germain scored three times after the 77th minute, erasing a one-goal deficit and beating Strasbourg 3-1 on Saturday at Stade de la Meinau. Giovanni Reyna gave Strasbourg an early lead, but Illia Zabarnyi, Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue scored in a late PSG surge. PSG improved to 4-1-2 in the competition and 5-1-2 across all competitions. Strasbourg dropped to 0-2 in the competition and 0-2 overall. The result left Strasbourg still seeking its first win of the season. The visitors remained patient after conceding early and controlled much of the second half before breaking through.
Reyna scored in the 17th minute, finishing from Gessime Yassine’s assist to put the home side ahead. Strasbourg held that advantage through halftime and deep into the second half, while PSG made a series of changes in search of more attacking thrust. PSG’s pressure finally produced an equalizer when Zabarnyi scored in the 77th minute. Harder was booked for Strasbourg in the 76th minute, and Essugo followed with a yellow card in the 78th minute. Dembele put PSG ahead in the 85th minute, and Doue added the final goal in the third minute of stoppage time. The late burst turned a narrow deficit into a clear road win and denied Strasbourg a result at home. PSG’s first-half chances did not produce a goal, and Strasbourg went into the break with the lead.
Reyna played 90 minutes and scored one goal for Strasbourg. Zabarnyi played 90 minutes and scored PSG’s first goal. Dembele, who played 27 minutes, finished with one goal and one assist. Doue, who played 36 minutes, scored PSG’s third goal. Ferran Torres played 90 minutes and recorded one assist. Yassine played 83 minutes and assisted Reyna’s opening goal. Those were the key statlines from the match, listed in descending order of importance. Dembele and Doue entered as substitutes before their goals, while Reyna, Zabarnyi, Torres and Yassine played the bulk of the match for their sides.
PSG made five substitutions. Digne entered in the 53rd minute, Beraldo and Fernandez in the 54th, and Neves and Kvaratskhelia in the 63rd. Strasbourg made four changes. Balde entered in the 60th minute, Demba in the 75th, and Yassine and Harder in the 83rd. Harder was shown a yellow card in the 76th minute, and Essugo was booked in the 78th. The bookings came as PSG pressed for an equalizer and Strasbourg tried to protect its lead. Zabarnyi scored between the two bookings. No further cards were issued in the match after that.
PSG had beaten Manchester City 4-2 and drawn 0-0 at Strasbourg in earlier matches this season. PSG also had wins over Le Mans, Marseille and Brest, along with a loss to Monaco and a draw with Lille. Strasbourg had lost 2-1 at Nice in its previous match. The teams’ competition records now show PSG with four wins, one loss and two draws, while Strasbourg has two losses. Across all competitions, PSG is 5-1-2 and Strasbourg is 0-2.
PSG next hosts Lyon, then visits Le Havre, hosts Troyes, visits Nice, hosts Lorient, visits Toulouse, hosts Paris FC, visits Racing Club de Lens, visits Angers and hosts Auxerre. Strasbourg next visits Rennes, hosts Auxerre and visits Toulouse. These matches will follow the late comeback at Stade de la Meinau for both clubs.
Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of PSG 2, Strasbourg 1. Interstat’s ELO system gave PSG a 72.1 percent probability to win. PSG had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 4 went under the over/under line of 3.5.