Whether they want to or not, Paris Saint-Germain is still one of the most difficult teams to beat in the Champions League. Simply because the defending champion always has the ability to explode at a level that many opponents can only dream of. Chelsea clearly felt that when they collapsed against PSG in the first leg of the round of 16.
PSG's season is not always stable, but the team that won the Champions League last season still always knows how to rise up at the right time. At Parc des Princes, they clearly showed that strength in the final minutes of the match.
Chelsea twice equalized to bring the match back to a 2-2 balance and even at one point made it difficult for PSG. However, the turning point occurred when goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen - who was unexpectedly chosen to start instead of Robert Sanchez - made a serious mistake. From that situation, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia stole the ball, creating an opportunity for Vitinha to loft the ball over Jorgensen's head, putting PSG ahead 3-2.
This mistake continues to extend the series of mistakes leading to Chelsea's goals conceded in the Champions League this season. Up to now, they have made three mistakes directly leading to the opponent's goals - only fewer than Tottenham among Premier League teams.
After that goal, PSG completely controlled the game. Luis Enrique's team accelerated strongly, especially thanks to Kvaratskhelia's explosive performance in the last 15 minutes. From a match that seemed likely to end in a draw, PSG scored two more goals to close a convincing 5-2 victory.
According to statistics, PSG scored up to 5 goals even though the expected goal difference (xG) was only 0.87. The difference of +4.13 goals compared to expectations is one of the highest numbers in the Champions League knockout round in the past 15 years.
Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior admitted that his team had made it difficult for themselves: "The last 15 to 20 minutes were crazy. We played evenly for 75 minutes, but just a few mistakes made the match get out of control.
In fact, Chelsea did not play badly. They took advantage of the gaps in PSG's defense to score 2 goals thanks to Malo Gusto and Enzo Fernandez. However, PSG's attacking power is too great.
Bradley Barcola opened the score early, Ousmane Dembele doubled the gap with a fast counter-attack, before Kvaratskhelia shone brightly in the final minutes of the match with 2 goals.
The Georgian star not only scored but also continuously stirred up The Blues' defense. After the match, Kvaratskhelia said: "We know we can do more. PSG is always PSG".
The 5-2 victory helps PSG have a huge advantage before the second leg at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea still has 90 minutes to hope to reverse the situation, but against PSG's terrible attack, that task is clearly extremely difficult.
The result in this first leg is very good, but we will have to endure no small difficulties in London. PSG will prepare for that match in the same way, with the same mentality, trying to score and win.
We will have problems if we keep thinking about the result as if the match is over. The reality is not like that, because the whole team still has to play another match ahead" - Enrique shared.
