Kvaratskhelia stunner helps PSG to winning Champions League start

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored a superb extremity arsenic Paris Saint-Germain began the defence of their Champions League crown with a broad 4-0 triumph implicit Atalanta astatine the Parc des Princes connected Wednesday.

Marquinhos opened the scoring wrong 3 minutes arsenic PSG made a accelerated commencement successful beforehand of their ain fans, with Kvaratskhelia bursting done to blast location a 2nd earlier the interval.

Nuno Mendes added different aboriginal successful the 2nd fractional and substitute Goncalo Ramos past wrapped up the triumph astatine the death.

Bradley Barcola besides had a punishment saved successful the archetypal fractional arsenic Luis Enrique’s squad proved acold excessively beardown for their Italian opponents, who had nary reply to the menace posed by the European champions.

PSG volition present anticipation to physique connected this and debar the troubles that befell them past season, erstwhile they won conscionable 1 and mislaid 3 of their archetypal 5 games successful the league phase.

They overcame that mediocre commencement to suffice for the knockout rounds and spell connected to triumph the title, but their prospects of retaining the trophy person been called into question with early-season injuries exposing the limits of an overworked squad.

Here it was all-action midfielder Joao Neves who had to travel disconnected successful the 2nd fractional aft going down seemingly complaining of a achy near hamstring.

The French nine hardly had immoderate off-season interruption aft a past run which stretched implicit 65 games and 11 months, and they precocious mislaid prima forwards Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue for respective weeks to injuries picked up connected planetary duty.

Playing astatine centre-forward here, therefore, was the 19-year-old Senny Mayulu, who came disconnected the seat to people the past extremity successful the 5-0 rout of Inter Milan successful past season’s final.

– Atalanta outclassed –

Atalanta came present caller from an unbeaten commencement to the run successful Serie A but having mislaid the main architects of their caller occurrence — manager Gian Piero Gasperini departed for Roma aft 9 years astatine the helm, portion past season’s apical scorer Mateo Retegui was sold to Saudi Arabia and African footballer of the twelvemonth Ademola Lookman has been frozen retired pursuing a failed to effort to unafraid a transfer.

PSG were successful beforehand successful the 3rd infinitesimal erstwhile Fabian Ruiz delivered the shot towards the acold station for Marquinhos to people his archetypal Champions League extremity successful 4 years.

An array of chances followed, with Nuno Mendes being denied by goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi erstwhile cleanable through, and Barcola having a changeable saved aft gathering Achraf Hakimi’s cutback.

Hakimi saw his effort turned onto the extracurricular of the station aft being acceptable up by a Ruiz back-heel, with Atalanta struggling to flight their ain fractional and taking astir 20 minutes to muster a changeable of their own.

Kvaratskhelia past sprung to beingness to marque it 2-0 successful the 39th minute, the Georgian controlling the shot connected the close with his backmost to goal, turning to travel wrong and bursting to the borderline of the container wherever helium fto alert with a changeable that fizzed past Carnesecchi.

PSG were awarded a punishment conscionable earlier the interval aft a VAR reappraisal spotted a foul connected Marquinhos, but Barcola’s footwear was mediocre and was easy saved.

It mattered not, with the 3rd arriving anyhow six minutes into the 2nd half, Mendes moving onto Barcola’s pass, turning wrong 1 defender and holding disconnected different earlier beating the goalkeeper astatine his adjacent post.

Then came the atrocious quality of the evening for PSG, with Neves coming disconnected injured earlier the hr mark, a show which does not augur good with a travel to Barcelona looming successful a fortnight.

PSG nevertheless went connected to adhd a 4th successful stoppage time, Ramos pouncing connected a abbreviated back-pass by Raoul Bellanova to score.

AFP

The station Kvaratskhelia stunner helps PSG to winning Champions League start appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.