May 09, (THEWILL) – Troyes held Paris Saint-Germain to a 2-2 draw as they put in their utmost to guarantee their spot in Ligue 1 next season and avoid relegation.
This season, no team has beaten PSG in Paris. Although two other French clubs have managed a draw, Troyes came the closest to ending that run, if only they were more clinical.
With a superb left-footed cross from wide on the right, Angel Di Maria set up the first goal and the terrible defending of the visitors was on display, as no Troyes defender was anywhere near the ball when Marquinhos kicked it in.
Di Maria, who appears to be on his way out of PSG this summer, may be doing so as the club’s all-time leading assist maker. With the assist for the opener, he clocked his 112th in 292 games across all competitions for Les Parisiens.
Another player that could potentially exit the club after this season, Kylian Mbappe, though his case is less clear than Di Maria’s, put in yet another show of ambition and enthusiasm as has marked his scintillating season.
In the 25th minute, Mbappe rushed onto a Neymar pass, and American defender Erik Palmer-Brown was unable to stop him fairly, resulting in a penalty that Neymar calmly scored to double the advantage for the hosts
Nuno Mendes, under pressure from the Troyes press, twisted and sent a blind pass across the face of goal five minutes later, giving Troyes a way back into the game. Ike Ugbo, a Canadian forward, could not have been in a better position, and he seized the chance to shoot past Keylor Navas.
PSG will be disappointed that they were unable to turn a late first-half dominance into a decisive third goal because in the second half, Troyes exploded into the scene. Renaud Ripart earned a penalty when his deft footwork caught Presnel Kimpembe off guard.
Florian Tardieu scored from the penalty spot with a fantastic Panenka before sprinting over to the away fans to whip them up into a frenzy.
PSG had chances to win, including a penalty shout from Achraf Hakimi and a Neymar goal that was ruled out by VAR due to Mbappe’s foul in the build-up.
