Lionel Messi once again failed to score his first Ligue 1 goal as Marseille held Paris Saint-Germain to a goalless draw on Sunday.
The 101st Le Classique in France this Sunday saw Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille play out a goalless draw at Stade Velodrome. The result helps RC Lens close the gap to the top to just seven points while Marseille slip to fourth, behind OGC Nice.
It was a disappointing result for both the teams due to contrasting reasons. PSG were heading into this game as the undisputed favourites, having collected 27 points in ten matches. But they were dismal in their offensive play, struggling to properly dominate the opposition and create clear cut goalscoring opportunities.
Their chances of collecting three points were dealt a further blow when Achraf Hakimi was shown a direct red card during the hour mark. Marseille, on the other hand, did create opportunities of their known but were extremely wasteful in front of goal, leading to a whole lot of frustration from coach Jorge Sampaoli.
In fact, Marseille should have scored at least twice given the number of chances they had created. But they ultimately had to settle for a point and here, at The Hard Tackle, we will run the rule over the PSG players in their disappointing draw this past weekend.
Keylor Navas: 6/10
Despite all the pressure Marseille created, Keylor Navas was surprisingly left quiet as the hosts only registered only one on target among their 15 attempts. The veteran goalkeeper still had to remain alert in between the sticks, in what was otherwise an easily kept clean sheet.
Achraf Hakimi: 2/10
Achraf Hakimi had difficulties imposing his authority on the proceedings, struggling to make his presence felt going forward. Defensively, he got caught out on multiple occasions, including the instance where the right-back ended up fouling Cengiz Under for the red card. A bad day at the office from the Moroccan international.
? Neymar
? Paredes
? Kurzawa
? Benedetto
? Amavi
? Payet
? Hakimi ?There have now been seven red cards in the last three Ligue 1 meetings between Marseille and PSG. ?#LeClassique pic.twitter.com/9h0A7mcyYU
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) October 24, 2021
Marquinhos: 6.5/10
Marquinhos had a decent enough game at the heart of the PSG backline. He was caught in an offensive stance for the Hakimi red card moment, but other than that, the PSG skipper did well to contain the threat of Arek Milik. His leadership was crucial in helping his team retain a clean sheet.
Presnel Kimpembe: 6.5/10
Presnel Kimpembe had a rusty start to the game. He did settle in, though, offering good defensive coverage for Marquinhos in the PSG backline. Their collective defensive contributions were key in helping them earn the clean sheet.
Nuno Mendes: 6/10
Nuno Mendes looked promising with his occasional forays into the final third as well as his link-up play with Kylian Mbappe. However, defence remains a massive weakness for the young left-back, who was caught out of position for Milik’s first-half goal that was ruled out by VAR. But he did produce an emphatic second-half display to help PSG contain Marseille.
Not many positives to take from Paris Saint-Germain’s side apart from the point, but thought Nuno Mendes’ performance in the second-half was a breath of fresh air. Been a while since PSG had such a defensive stalwart at left back.
— Zach Lowy (@ZachLowy) October 24, 2021
Marco Verratti: 4/10
Marco Verratti had trouble expressing himself in the middle of the park. He was far from the midfield dynamo with the immense technical abilities that we all know. Instead, the Italian was rather passive in his game, leading to a lack of penetration from the PSG side. He was taken off at half-time, most likely due to a knock.
Danilo Pereira: 6/10
Danilo was asked the screen the backline in the number six position. He was solid for the most part, especially during the first half. Unfortunately for him, the dismissal of Hakimi saw the Portuguese international being shifted to a more defensive role.
Lionel Messi: 6.5/10
Lionel Messi’s search for his first Ligue 1 goal continues, as it was yet another frustrating evening for the Argentine international. He was the focal point of the PSG attack for obvious reasons, and while the former Barcelona superstar did create excellent openings, he was unable to get his shot across properly and test Pau Lopez in goal. Also missed an excellent heading opportunity early on.
Messi is still waiting for his first Ligue 1 goal ?♂️ pic.twitter.com/4BuIWQzjUP
— Goal (@goal) October 24, 2021
Neymar: 4/10
Neymar was by far the worst attacker for PSG on the night. He was effective going forward and looked very rusty, having struggled with fitness issues so far this campaign. It was beyond disappointing to see the Brazilian struggle in the final third, as he eventually made way for Gini Wijnaldum late in the game.
Angel Di Maria: 5/10
Angel Di Maria did create a few attacking opportunities in the first half. But that was the extent of his involvement on the proceedings, with the Argentine suffering a massive loss of influence as the game progressed. He was sacrificed by Mauricio Pochettino shortly after Hakimi’s red card.
Kylian Mbappe: 5.5/10
Kylian Mbappe was a threat down the flanks due to his raw pace. He even created a few dangerous openings for PSG, but the Frenchman was largely restricted by an inspired Marseille backline. As a result, he failed to find the back of the net while his combination play with Messi wasn’t much influential either.
SUBSTITUTES
Idrissa Gueye: 5/10
Idrissa Gueye replaced Verratti at half-time. He was anonymous for the large part of the second half, though, failing to create any real impact on the proceedings.
Thilo Kehrer: 6/10
Thilo Kehrer came on for Di Maria after Hakimi’s red card. He occupied the right hand side of the PSG backline.
Georginio Wijnaldum: N/A
A late replacement for Neymar. Did not play enough to warrant a rating.
