- Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said two early conceded goals affected Manchester City's morale during the Champions League clash against PSG
- PSG struck three times in the first half through Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele, and Vitinha to take control at the Etihad Stadium
- Erling Haaland scored twice in the second half to pull City back into the contest, but PSG held firm to win 4-2 on the night
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has said the two quick goals his side conceded at the start of Wednesday night's Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain were the root cause of their 4-2 home defeat.
PSG, the reigning back-to-back European champions, arrived at the Etihad Stadium with a clear intent to assert themselves early and delivered one of the most dominant first-half performances seen in this season's competition.
Source: Getty Images
According to Sky Sports, Desire Doue opened the scoring with a long-range effort before Ousmane Dembele added a second just 99 seconds later, finishing off a fluid team move that showcased exactly why Luis Enrique's side are considered the best team on the continent.
Vitinha then capped an electric first 45 minutes with a powerful finish, collecting Warren Zaire-Emery's instinctive flick to give PSG a commanding three-goal lead at the break.
Pep Guardiola watched from the stands as the atmosphere at the Etihad fell flat under the weight of PSG's dominance.
Man City's fightback falls short
The second half told an entirely different story as Man City came out with urgency and purpose, making the game significantly more open and transitional.
Erling Haaland halved the deficit with a flicked header before PSG's Maghnes Akliouche restored the three-goal cushion to make it 4-1.
Haaland then completed his brace to give City a degree of respectability on the scoreboard, and the hosts struck the woodwork twice more as they pressed for a third.
Despite some nervy moments, PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who had earlier gifted Akliouche the fourth goal with a handling error, made amends by stopping a late penalty from Ferran Torres.
The result handed City their first defeat across all competitions this season, but Maresca chose to draw positives from the way his players responded after the interval, BBC Sports reports.
"I really like playing against PSG because they are brave," Maresca said after the match.
"We know the way they want to press. They go man-to-man and they are very dynamic on the ball. They are the best team in Europe. They play fantastic football."
He added:
"But I think we are there. The reason why we struggled was because we conceded two early goals so quickly. When you are on the pitch you might think this is difficult, but in the second half we created enough to maybe deserve something. We feel sorry for the first half but I think we're quite happy now."
Maresca also moved to dismiss any suggestion that Manchester City's ongoing legal proceedings related to alleged financial fair play violations had any impact on the result.
He pointed out that his team had recorded six consecutive Premier League victories and a Champions League win before Wednesday's defeat, arguing that off-field distractions do not seep into his squad's performances.
Mysterious cat predicts Man City vs PSG clash
Legit.ng previously reported about Man City’s Champions League clash with PSG, including the teams’ recent head-to-head record and the history between managers Enzo Maresca and Luis Enrique.
But while City have won four of their last seven meetings, the mysterious cat Nimbus Pronos has backed PSG to win. Will its prediction be right again?
Source: Legit.ng
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