PSG vs Shakhtar: match report

08-12-15 23:37:53

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In a match of Champions League group stage, on December 8, Shakhtar played an away game with PSG.

UEFA Champions League 2015-16. Group stage. 6th round

December 8th, 2015. Paris. Parc des Princes. 8C

PSG (Paris, France) – Shakhtar (Donetsk, Ukraine) - 2:0 (0:0)

Goals: 1:0 Lucas (57), 2:0 Ibrahimovic (86)

PSG: Trapp, Marquinhos, Kyurzava, Van der Wiel, David Luiz, Stambouli, Lucas (Nkunku, 87), Matuidi (Di Maria, 68), Rabiot, Ibrahimovic (c), Lavezzi (Cavani, 69)

Substitutes: Sirigu, Kimpembe, Maxwell, Thiago Motta

Head coach: Laurent Blanc

Shakhtar: Kanibolotskyy, Srna (c), Kucher, Rakitskiy, Ismaily, Stepanenko, Fred, Marlos (Kovalenko, 74), Taison (Bernard, 69), Teixeira, Eduardo (Dentinho, 78)

Substitutes: Pyatov, Kryvtsov, Malyshev, Ferreyra

Head coach: Mircea Lucescu

Booked: Lavezzi (39), Ismaily (81), Rakitskiy (84)

Referee: Anthony Taylor (England)

Before match

The French team were not motivated, competition wise, for they had already booked their place in the Champions League knockout round, finishing second in the group. The Pitmen were competing for the Europa League spot, but to do that, they had to play no worse than Malmo, who played an away game with Real Madrid. In the Pitmen’s starting line-up, Anton Kanibolotskyi was stationed in goal, Ismaily was deployed at left back, with Eduardo spearheading the attack.

First half

From the opening minutes, the opponents showed that they were going to attack in numbers. Kanibolotskyi caught the ball at the near post following a dangerous shot, and Eduardo failed to slot in an Ismaily cross from the left. Soon the Pitmen’s goalkeeper made a mistake, gifting the ball to Ibrahimovic straight inside the penalty area, the Swede shipped the ball only to send it over the crossbar. Eduardo tried to hit the ball first time after a cross from Darijo Srna from the flank, but the shot was blocked and the ball rolled into the hands of the opposition goalkeeper. The match saw many attacking moves, with the Pitmen looking more dangerous, and in the end of the first half during a corner kick Ibrahimovic handballed, but the referee waved play on. The first half ended 0-0.
  
Second half

After the break, the flow of the game remained the same: the teams were again attacking. A shot by the opposition player whistled just wide of the goal post, with Shakhtar responding through Ismaily’s slalom run into the opposition penalty area from his own penalty box before drilling a cross into the penalty kick spot area, only for Teixeira to hit the ball over the crossbar. On 57 minutes, the scoring was opened: Lucas held off an Ismaily challenge to fire in from the edge of the penalty area.

After that, PSG took control of the game. Kanibolotskyy parried away a Matuidi shot, and Lavezzi missed the targert, striking from close range. The Pitmen did not sit deep, and the response was sharp, when Eduardo failed to get on the end of Darijo Srna’s powerful cross. Kanibolotskyy tipped the ball away after a curling shot from Lavezzi towards the bottom corner of the net. Ismaily had a good chance but his effort was kept out by the opposition goalkeeper, and Oleksandr Kucher’s shot was blocked by David Luiz.

Then, the opponents exchanged with dangerous chances: Ibrahimovic sent the ball off the mark after bearing down on goal, and soon Zlatan headed the ball away after a powerful shot from Yaroslav Rakytskyy following the Pitmen’s corner kick. The Pitmen attacked a lot and came close to scoring, but it was the Paris team, who scored. On 86 minutes, Ibrahimovic was again put through on goal, and this time he struck the ball into the near corner of the net to make it 2-0.

This defeat did not change anything for the Pitmen: Mircea Lucescu’s team are still sitting in third place in the group with three points and have booked a place in the Europa League.