Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain: Warren Zaire-Emery goal secures draw as PSG advance in UEFA Champions League
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Updated 13/12/2023 at 22:51 GMT
A 1-1 draw at Borussia Dortmund proved just enough for Paris Saint-Germain to advance in the UEFA Champions League. Luis Enrique’s side finish second in Group F, level on points with AC Milan but the Parisiens progress thanks to a better head to head record. The signs had looked ominous for PSG until teenage sensation Warren Zaire-Emery cancelled out Karim Adeyemi’s opener.
Warren Zaire-Emery of Paris Saint-Germain celebrates after scoring his teams 1:1 goal during the UEFA Champions League match between Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain at Signal Iduna Park
Image credit: Getty Images
Warren Zaire Emery scored a crucial equaliser as Paris Saint-Germain earned a 1-1 draw at Borussia Dortmund to seal their place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League.
PSG looked to be heading out in the first half with Newcastle ahead and their fortunes seemed perilous when Karim Adeyemi was set up by Niclas Fullkrug to slot home six minutes after the break.
Five minutes later the visitors drew level when Kylian Mbappe's pull-back found its way to Zaire Emery and the 17-year-old drilled home, with the aid of a slight deflection off Adeyemi.
The match was goal-less at the break but there could have easily been six goals by then with both sides, but particularly the visitors' pair of Randal Kolo Muani and Lee Kang-in, guilty of missing chances to put their side in front. Niklas Sule also produced one of the great goal-line clearances to deny Mbappe.
PSG looked to have scored the crucial goal when Mbappe latched onto Achraf Hakimi's through-ball and coolly slotted home but VAR ruled he was a fraction offside.
This result plus Newcastle's 2-1 defeat at home to AC Milan sees Dortmund finish top of the group with 11 points and PSG second on eight, ahead of the Italian side due to a better head-to-head record.
Talking Point - How far can PSG go?
PSG are an exhilarating watch. Barring their ultras, they do not create the atmosphere to compare to St James' Park but the last 16 and the tournament would be poorer for their absence.
Whether they can win the trophy this year is very much in doubt but they now have less pressure on them and at least look a side which has improvement in them, rather than one stuck with older superstars in a system which perennially proved lacking. Of course Mbappe is the star, but Zaire-Emery and Muani are both thrilling talents and it seems to bring the best out of their talisman linking with them.
No seeded side would be happy to draw them out of the hat. That said, it does not require a great analytical mind to suggest they will need to tighten up substantially at the back to reach the business end of the tournament.
Player of the Match - Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Mbappe's passing in key areas of the field is fabulous and the best in the tournament at present with Lionel Messi away and Kevin De Bruyne injured. He created numerous chances for team-mates which really should have been put away.
And of course when his team required it after falling behind, maybe the best one-on-one player the game has seen created the equaliser. He was also a miraculous goal-line clearance and narrow offside decision away from putting the game decisively in his side's favour.
Player Ratings
Dortmund: Kobel 7; Wolf 7, Sule 7, Hummels 6, Bensebaini 6; Ozcan 7, Brandt 8, Reus 7; Adeyemi 7, Fullkrug 7, Bynoe-Gittens 6.
Subs: Malen 7, Schlotterbeck 6, Sabitzer 6, Reyna 6, Haller 6.
PSG: Donnarumma 7; Hakimi 6, Skriniar 6, Marquinhos 5, Hernandez 6; Vitinha 7, Zaire-Emery 8, Lee 7; Kolo Muani 7, Mbappe 9*, Barcola 7.
Subs: Ugarte 6, Asensio 6, Soler 6.
Match Highlights
15' HE HAD TO HIT THE TARGET! Wolf finds himself in the centre forward position after a good pass from Hummels and one-two with Brandt but drives his effort wide with Lucas Hernandez's diving lunge probably just doing enough to put him off.
16' AN EVEN BETTER CHANCE! Muani drives a ball back from the by-line and Lee at the six-yard box gets very little connection on the ball and it goes wide. Muani may have been offside, but we'll never know.
18' WHAT A CLEARANCE! Mbappe controls a long ball beautifully and then gets around the goalkeeper before sliding the ball into the empty goal....but no! A remarkable sliding clearance from Sule denies him with an outstretched toe.
25' MUANI WITH A GREAT CHANCE! Mbappe plays a through-ball which sees Muani ghost past Hummels but the forward flicks the ball with the outside of his boot and his effort slides wide of the post.
27' GOOD SAVE FROM DONNARUMMA! Marquinhos just heads the ball straight to the edge of his own box and it comes to Reus who drills a left-footed effort which the PSG stopper pushes over.
33' ADEYEMI WITH A GREAT CHANCE! Donnarumma makes a good save diving to his left from Ozcan's 25-yard effort and the rebound, admittedly bouncing awkwardly, is put over the bar by Adeyemi.
51' GOAL FOR DORTMUND (KARIM ADEYEMI)! What a big goal that is in the tournament. Hakimi loses the ball on the edge of his own area to Bensebaini who slips the ball to Fullkrug and he coolly lays back to Adeyemi who slots home off the post.
56' GOAL FOR PSG (WARREN ZAIRE EMERY)! Mbappe again with magic on the left flank he beats Sule easily then pulls back into the box and it comes to Zaire-Emery on the edge of the box and he drills a low shot which deflects slightly off Adeyemi en route to the net.
76' GOAL FOR PSG! Mbappe beats the offside trap (we think) and coolly waited for Kobel to commit before sliding past him and into the far post. It is very close...
77' OFFSIDE! The goal is disallowed. He was a fraction offside. He could have been five yards behind Hummels and still got there first.
Key Stats
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