Montpellier-PSG: Vitinha size boss, the defense of the MHSC absent subscribers... The tops and the flops

TOPS

The Portuguese midfielder was in all the right places during PSG's 6-2 victory in Montpellier on Sunday. Initially well inspired in his control-strike sequence, Vitinha allowed the Parisians to take the lead while the Montpellier team seemed to have entered this meeting much better (0-1, 14th). Behind, he never decreased in intensity or technical accuracy. With 93% successful passes (80/86), the former FC Porto player perfectly fed the Parisian midfield throughout the match. In the second period, he was initially well inspired to find Kylian Mbappé over the defense, who just had to finish. He then served his compatriot Nuno Mendes perfectly for the sixth Parisian goal. His association with Kang-In Lee in the middle was one of the keys to Parisian success.

Aware that he is not likely to play all the championship matches between now and the end of the season, Kylian Mbappé took advantage of this MHSC-PSG to strike a big blow at La Mosson. The Parisian captain for one evening - Marquinhos was out again - scored a nice hat-trick before taking off towards Clairefontaine to join the Blues at the start of the week. Even if he seemed behind at the start of the match, the native of Paris did not lack precision on a good service from Kolo Muani in the first act (0-2, 23rd). After suffering like his entire team, it was he who showed the way in the second half by unleashing a sublime cannon shot from outside the area. A candy. “You have to take advantage of it while it’s there,” relishes Luis Enrique, who found Mbappé “exceptional.” He is not the only one...

The Montpellier winger caused a lot of problems in the Parisian defense in the first act. Arnaud Nordin made Lucas Beraldo dizzy for 45 minutes. On his usual right side, the former Stéphanois was in great shape. In a first situation, he could have obtained a penalty after contact with Beraldo, who had knocked him off balance once he entered the area after a good ride. But Nordin, born in Paris, did not give up, quite the contrary. He was also rewarded after perfectly following a cross deflected by the Parisian defense, where he took the time to adjust Gigio Donnarumma with a header, at close range. His races greatly unbalanced the Parisian bloc. His exit at the hour mark must have been welcomed as good news by the Parisian defenders...

FLOPS

The goalkeeper did not have a great night, unlike his last performances in the championship or the European Cup. Gianluigi Donnarumma did not seem as calm in his zone as usual. Despite some good outings at the start of the match, he was first beaten by Nordin with a header, before conceding a penalty after a foul on a very poorly managed outing. Although, it was especially Danilo Pereira's back pass which was poorly executed at the time... On his restarts, he was nevertheless excellent and showed that he continued to progress on this point.

Also read “We must take advantage of Mbappé as much as we can”: Luis Enrique in admiration of his striker

The young Frenchman did not weigh in on this meeting. However, with the absence of Ousmane Dembélé, a last minute package, Bradley Barcola seemed legitimate to occupy the right wing. But the former Lyonnais hardly shone. With only 30 balls touched, the one who has been gaining momentum recently has fallen back into the pitfalls of the beginning of the year.

The entire MHSC back line had a very complicated evening. Unable to keep up with the depth and speed of the Parisian attackers, the Montpellier block paid dearly on the counterattacks in the first act. Returning from the locker room, deciding to play lower and tighter, Michel Der Zakarian's men did not seem to find the solution to stop the Parisian lightning either. They never managed to adapt and too often left their opponents alone at the edge of the area. Whether it was Vitinha (14th), Mbappé (49th) or Lee (51st), the latter did not require so much to adjust Dimitry Bertaud, who worked more to recover the leather from the bottom of his nets than to deviate from its frame. The last minute absence of Benjamin Lecomte in the Montpellier cages, coupled with a defense that no longer knew where to turn, and now the MHSC found itself conceding six goals at home.