Neymar and Kylian Mbappe were at the center stage as Paris Saint-Germain returned to winning ways on the road in Ligue 1 with an entertaining contest, getting a 3-2 victory at Bordeaux.
Summer signing Lionel Messi was again absent through injury, though the other two stars of Mauricio Pochettino’s deadly attacking trio combined to brilliant effect.
Neymar had not scored from open play in Ligue 1 since doing so against Lens in May but ended that run with two sublime first-half strikes.
PSG players celebrate after Neymar scored the opener against Bordeaux on Saturday, 6 November 2021 in a Ligue 1 meeting. | PHOTO: Getty Images |
Mbappe, who had teed up Neymar’s double – got in on the action midway through the second half to ensure late goals from Alberth Elis and M’Baye Niang were not enough for Bordeaux to manage a memorable comeback.
It was far from plain sailing for PSG at first, as Bordeaux had the better of the opening exchanges, regularly catching the visitors dawdling in their own half.
Yet the hosts were soon lamenting their failure to make PSG pay, with Neymar taking Mbappe’s floated pass under his spell before drilling a wonderful finish beyond Benoit Costil.
Bordeaux shot-stopper Costil had to be at his best to prevent Mbappe from making it 2-0 but could do little to prevent Neymar from doubling PSG’s tally before the break.
PSG forward Neymar celebrated his second goal against Bordeaux by honoring a Brazilian singer who passed away last week. | PHOTO: Getty Images |
The combination with Mbappe again came to the fore, Neymar playing a slick one-two with the France star before sliding a cool effort into the bottom-left corner.
Mbappe looked set to go from provider to scorer early in the second half, only for Laurent Koscielny to make a fantastic last-ditch block.
He was not to be denied again, though, and he tucked home into a gaping goal after Ander Herrera’s pass had set Georgino Wijnaldum away.
Elis’ close-range finish gave Bordeaux hope, with substitute Niang then slotting in after a fantastic one-two with Jimmy Briand in stoppage time, but it was too little too late.
Messi’s persistent injury issues have prevented the superstar from getting into the full flow at Paris, at least in domestic football – as he has been influential in the Champions League, but Neymar and Mbappe were more than enough to shrug aside Bordeaux.
With Nice not in action until Sunday, PSG sits clear at the top with 11 wins from 13 games. After a 2-0 defeat at Rennes and a 0-0 draw at Marseille, Saturday’s result also saw the capital club avoid a run of three away games without scoring – a streak they last went on in 2010.
Neymar has now scored seven goals against Bordeaux in Ligue 1, making them his favourite opponent in the competition.
Ahead of this much-needed performance, the 29-year-old Brazil international had not scored in his previous five league matches, which was his longest drought since arriving at PSG in 2017.
Bordeaux has not won any of their last 13 Ligue 1 games against PSG (D4 L9). The Girondins have only had two longer runs without a win against a specific opponent in the top-flight: against Lyon between September 1999 and August 2006 (15) and against Reims between September 1978 and December 2020 (14).
PSG welcomes Nantes to the Parc des Princes on November 20 after the November international break which starts next week, while Bordeaux visit Metz a day later.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login