Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United play to a draw in pre-season friendly
The Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United match ends in a 1-1 draw ahead of the UEFA Super Cup
In their second pre-season outing, Paris Saint-Germain secured a 1-1 draw against Manchester United in Gothenburg, Sweden, just four days before the UEFA Super Cup clash with Aston Villa.
An encouraging start for the Parisians
The French side, still missing several key players, quickly silenced the home crowd with a composed opening goal. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Dário Fernandes, and Ibrahim Mbaye starred in the move that culminated in the opening goal in the second minute. Just a minute later, Kvaratskhelia’s effort forced a fine save from Tom Heaton, underlining PSG’s intent not to endure another difficult outing like their previous 0-3 defeat to Mallorca.
A resilient response from Manchester United
Despite falling behind early, Manchester United regrouped swiftly. Amidst the substitutions, Bryan Mbeumo and Amad Diallo posed the biggest threats. After a free-kick by Mbeumo was parried away by Matveï Safonov in the 20th minute, Diallo capitalized on an error by Axel Koukaba to level the scores in the 32nd minute. Safonov then had to make another crucial stop from a Mbeumo free-kick in the 38th minute, while Koukaba nearly gifted the ball to Diallo moments later. Only Kvaratskhelia maintained his early momentum.
Late drama and debuts
Manchester United grew more dangerous after the break, with Mbeumo’s strike saved by Safonov in the 54th minute. The visitors’ goalkeeper ventured far from his line to intercept Joshua Zirkzee in the 72nd minute, drawing jeers from the crowd. His replacement, 18-year-old Alessandro Longoni, endured a nervy spell but ultimately held his ground.
Portuguese and Marquinhos make their entrance
Last Wednesday, Lucas Chevalier had replaced Safonov in goal, but this time the former Lille player remained on the bench. Luis Enrique used the hour mark to introduce Portuguese talents Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, and João Mendes, alongside Marquinhos, who all featured for around 30 minutes before the season’s first major test against Aston Villa.
Match line-ups
- Paris Saint-Germain: Safonov (Longoni, 77’) – Boly, Zabarnyi, Pacho (Marquinhos, 62’), Koukaba (Mendes, 62’) – Beraldo, Mayulu (cap) (Neves, 62’), Fernandes (Vitinha, 62’) – Mbaye, Ayari (Ndjantou, 46’), Kvaratskhelia.
- Manchester United: Heaton (Mee, 49’) – Mazraoui (Dalot, 46’), Maguire (cap), Heaven (Yoro, 46’), Shaw (Amass, 65’) – Mount (T. Fletcher, 20’), Santos (Tielemans, 65’) – Diallo (J. Fletcher, 65’), Lacey, Dorgu (Fernandes, 65’) – Mbeumo (Zirkzee, 65’).
