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| BBC Report UEFA Report | |||||||
| Event | 2020–21 UEFA Champions League | ||||||
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| Date | Tuesday 20 October 2020 | ||||||
| Venue | Parc des Princes, Paris | ||||||
| Player of the Match | Axel Tuanzebe | ||||||
| Referee | Antonio Mateu Lahoz (Spain) | ||||||
| Attendance | 0 | ||||||
← PSG - Nîmes Man Utd - Newcastle Utd PSG - Dijon Man Utd - Chelsea → | |||||||
Paris Saint-Germain v Manchester United was a match which took place at Parc des Princes on Tuesday 20 October 2020.
Marcus Rashford repeated his late heroics against Paris St-Germain with a superb winner as Manchester United marked their return to the Champions League with a fine win at the home of last season's beaten finalists.
Rashford's stoppage-time penalty sealed a famous victory at the Parc des Princes 18 months ago and the England striker was again on target to ensure Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side took maximum points from their opening match in a formidable group.
The visitors had excelled in a first half which saw Bruno Fernandes stroke them ahead with a twice-taken penalty.
But the multiple French champions were far stronger and threatening in the second half and deservedly drew level when United striker Anthony Martial headed into his own net.
David de Gea had to put in a much-improved display in United's goal, making strong saves to deny PSG's superstar duo Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
And the sides looked set to share the points when Rashford collected a pass from substitute Paul Pogba, rolled away from a defender and fired in off the base of the post from 20 yards.
Rashford's penalty completed a stunning comeback in 2019 which all but cemented the case for Solskjaer's temporary reign to be made permanent, turning a delighted Rio Ferdinand - the former United defender turned BT Sport pundit - into a meme in the process.
Solskjaer has not been able to maintain that blistering success since becoming full-time manager, but once again the Norwegian was able to conjure a victory against the odds.
Without captain Harry Maguire and midfielder Pogba, United played a back five - with defender Axel Tuanzebe being summoned from the wilderness and shining on his first appearance of 2020.
Twice the 22-year-old kept stride with the rapid Mbappe and made fine challenges in an impressive display.
At the other end, United's opener came from a more familiar route - Fernandes converting a penalty after Martial was tripped. It was, remarkably, the 27th spot-kick awarded to United since the start of last season.
Fernandes, the captain on the night, actually missed for the second time in three days, but Keylor Navas was clearly off his line before the save and the video assistant referee called it back. Fernandes went the same way; the goalkeeper went the other.
PSG looked far more like their old selves after the break and United had to defend well - but Rashford was guilty of wasting a couple of chances on the counter-attack before his brilliant late winner.
The rebuilding of Paris St-Germain has long been aimed solely at European glory - with domestic monopoly tied up years ago - and the run to the final just 58 days ago looked like a key juncture.
Thomas Tuchel's side is packed with blistering talent, but question marks over their consistency have long been raised and this was another frustrating display.
They moved the ball far too slowly in the first half and deserved to find themselves behind, even if De Gea was called into a double save from Angel di Maria and Layvin Kurzawa.
Tuchel moved Di Maria deeper at half-time, sending on Everton loanee Moise Kean up front, and his side were better. De Gea again made a flying save to deny Mbappe after a typically brilliant run, and Kurzawa hit the crossbar with a miscued cross.
Martial gave them a route back into the match when he nodded Neymar's inswinging corner into his own net, but United improved when Pogba came on.
With RB Leipzig - semi-finalists last season - up and running with a win, it is now Tuchel's side who need to click into gear fast just to make it out of Group H.
Match[]
Details[]
| 20 October 2020 21:00 |
 Paris Saint-Germain
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1–2 | Manchester United 
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Parc des Princes, Paris Attendance: 0 Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (Spain) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Martial  55', og'
|
BBC Report UEFA Report |
Bruno Fernandes 23' (Pen) Rashford 87'
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         Paris Saint-Germain
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     Manchester United
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Match Stats[]
| Overall | Paris Saint-Germain | Manchester United |
|---|---|---|
| Goals scored | 1 | 2 |
| Total shots | 14 | 14 |
| Shots on target | 5 | 6 |
| Ball possession | 61% | 39% |
| Corner kicks | 11 | 8 |
| Fouls committed | 9 | 14 |
See also[]
External links[]
| Paris Saint-Germain F.C. matches - 2020–21 |
| 2020–21 Ligue 1 |
| 2020–21 Coupe de France |
| Caen (a) · Brest (a) · Lille (h) · Angers (h) |
| 2020 Trophée des Champions |
| Marseille (n) |
| 2020–21 Champions League |
| Manchester United (h) · İstanbul Başakşehir (a) · RB Leipzig (a) · RB Leipzig (h) · Manchester United (a) · İstanbul Başakşehir (h) · Barcelona (a) · Barcelona (h) · Bayern Munich (a) · Bayern Munich (h) · Manchester City (h) · Manchester City (a) · |