Sorry PSG knocked out of French Cup by Marseille

Marseille, February 9 (BNA): Paris Saint-Germain’s miserable start to the year continued when it was knocked out in the French Cup round of 16 by Olympique de Marseille.

Marseille, who have only beaten PSG twice since Qatar Sports Investment (QSI) took over the capital’s side in 2011, reached the quarter-finals thanks to an Alexis Sanchez penalty and a thunderbolt by Ruslan Malinowski after a first-half Sergio Ramos goal.

Paris Saint-Germain have lost three times already in 2023 and their defeat in the cup comes less than a week before they face Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League last 16, Reuters reports.

Without the injured Kylian Mbappe, who will also miss the Bayern clash, PSG have struggled and according to captain Marquinhos, they will now need to “shut their mouths and work” to bounce back.

“They pushed hard and we couldn’t break the boundaries,” Marquinhos added. “It hurts because it was a cup match against our great rivals.”

Marseille coach Igor Theodore rejoiced at their victory.

“Amazing guys, they are champions. It’s great for the club,” he said.

Marseille took the lead in the 31st minute when Sanchez scored a penalty after Ramos had knocked Cengiz Ender down, giving the hosts a deserved advantage after a lively start.

However, Ramos made up for his mistake with a header from a corner kick from Neymar two minutes into stoppage time in the first half, shortly after the Brazilian hit the post with an 18-meter shot.

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Then the Velodrome began to boil when Malinowski, who joined on loan from Atalanta last month, beat Gianluigi Donnarumma with a half-volley from just outside the penalty area into the top corner.

Ramos had a goal ruled out for offside in injury time in an agonizing finish as Marseille defended tooth and nail.

On the other hand, Olympique Lyonnais ousted Lille 4-2 on penalties after a 2-2 draw.

AJ Auxerre was beaten 3-2 at home by Rodez, who took the lead after scoring all three tries on goal.

The quarter-final draw will take place on Thursday.






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