Ousmane Dembele scored and provided an assist as Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to beat Strasbourg 3-1 away on Saturday, moving to the top of the French Ligue 1 table.
PSG fell behind to an early goal from United States international Giovanni Reyna at the Stade de la Meinau before last year’s Ballon d’Or winner Dembele came off the bench to inspire the comeback.
According to SuperSport, Dembele missed a penalty in the 72nd minute but recovered to set up Illia Zabarnyi for the equaliser six minutes later.
The forward then put the reigning French and European champions ahead with five minutes remaining before playing a part in Desire Doue’s stoppage-time goal to seal the victory.
The result extended PSG’s winning run to four matches in Ligue 1 and six in all competitions, including the Champions League.
PSG manager Luis Enrique praised Dembele’s impact after the forward came off the bench in a match where several regular starters were rested ahead of key European fixtures against Manchester City and Barcelona.
“I told him, ‘If you play for 25 minutes and you give an assist and score a goal, you don’t need to play any longer. That is enough’,” Luis Enrique said.
He added that players needed to be managed carefully during a demanding season.
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“Ousmane and the other players are not machines and they will not always be at their best. There are games over the course of a season where you are not at your best level because that is normal,” he said.
PSG had failed to win any of their opening three domestic league matches this season but now have 14 points from seven games.
They moved top of the standings on goals scored, ahead of Lille and Monaco, although Monaco had a chance to reclaim the lead when they visited Lorient on Sunday.
Lille drew 1-1 with Brest, while Rennes, Paris FC and Lyon also had opportunities to move above PSG in Sunday’s fixtures.
The Strasbourg match was one of PSG’s toughest domestic tests of the season, coming just three days after their 4-2 Champions League victory over Manchester City and three days before they host Barcelona.
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