Real Madrid remain on course for a third successive Champions League triumph after inflicting Paris Saint-Germain’s first home defeat in nearly two years to book their place in the quarterfinals.
PSG, who were reduced to 10 men following the second-half dismissal of Marco Verratti, had been desperate to end their wait for European glory this season having never previously reached even the semifinals. But they crashed out at the round of 16 stage and suffered their first home defeat in all competitions in the process, with Real becoming the first visiting team to win at Parc des Princes (all competitions) since Monaco in March 2016.
The implications for coach Unai Emery are likely to be serious, with the former Sevilla boss expected to lose his job at the end of the season as PSG’s Qatari owners are impatient for success beyond the club’s French borders. But Real, despite their struggles in La Liga, rolled on with Tuesday night’s victory and did it with Zinedine Zidane leaving Isco, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale on the bench at the start of the game in order to field a more defensive line-up.
Even with a more cautious XI, Real dominated against a PSG team that lacked self-belief and Cristiano Ronaldo promptly put them ahead early in the second-half with a far-post header. Edinson Cavani gave PSG hope of a fight-back by equalising on 70 minutes, but rather than chase the two further goals required to take the game into extra-time, PSG were caught out on the counter-attack when Casemiro restored Real’s lead
Going out of the Champions League so early is a huge blow for PSG, but Real are where they expect to be and they will be a dangerous opponent in the last eight.
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