Paris will be able to spend the holidays warm.
The victory of PSG against Strasbourg (4-0), this Wednesday evening, ends a year 2020 full of paradoxes.
Despite the long break due to Covid, the men of Marquinhos had an enchanted summer with three national titles and a first Champions League final in the year of the club's 50th anniversary.
Since September, however, the Covid, injuries and a hellish calendar show an exhausted PSG who ends the year on the knees.
The success against Strasbourg perfectly illustrates this difficult period despite the large score.
The ten absent due to injury still forced Thomas Tuchel to tinker.
He established his five defenders still available and forced Colin Dagba to help out at a left piston post.
The international Espoirs did well and is even at the origin of the first goal.
His cross found Di Maria whose strike was repelled by Kawashima.
Pembélé arises to register at 18 his first goal in favor of his training club (1-0, 18th).
A beautiful Christmas present for the young defender and for Paris who then dominated for a long time without finding the flaw like the strike against Rafinha saved in two stages by Kawashima (40th).
But Alsatian resistance had its limits and the last ten minutes were an ordeal for the men of Thierry Laurey.
First time in 4 years that Paris does not finish the year in the lead
In the 80th minute, Kylian Mbappé, transparent until then, appears to cut a center in perfect withdrawal from Di Maria and register his 12th goal in 13 L1 games.
What consolidates his status as top scorer in the championship.
In the process, Gueye with a masterful strike (3-0, 89th) and Kean (90th + 1) come to garnish the Parisian hood a little more.
For the first time in four years, Paris does not end the year at the top of the ranking.
A small alert even if Lyon (the leader) and Lille remain only one point after their successes over Nantes (3-0) and Montpellier (3-2).
An accounting situation combined with the qualification for the round of 16 against Barcelona (February 16-March 10) which allows Paris to avoid the crisis, even if Tuchel's statements before the match cause trouble.
Paris will have to hope to see its infirmary empty in 2021 if it does not want to be faced with great disappointment.
The players will have only nine days of vacation to rest and cut a little mentally before a recovery from January 6 in Saint-Etienne.
Holidays for which Neymar has taken the lead.
The Brazilian, injured in the ankle, was already in the country at the time of the last success of the year.
He was already certain to spend the holidays warm.
MATCH SHEET
Half-time: 1-0
In camera.
Referee: M. Miguelgorry.
Goals.
Pembélé (17th).
Mbappé (80th), Gueye (89th), Kean (90th + 1).
Warnings.
PSG: Navas - Kehrer, Marquinhos (c), Bakker - Pembélé, Herrera (Gueye, 78th), Verratti, Rafinha (Draxler, 83rd), Dagba - Di Maria (Fadiga, 89th), Mbappé (Kean, 84th).
Entr.
: Tuchel.
Strasbourg: Kawashima - Lala, Simakan (Chahiri, 89th), Mitrovic (c), Djiku, Carole - Aholou, Sissoko (Thomasson, 64th), Liénard (Prcic, 64th), Bellegarde (Diallo, 77th) - Ajorque.
Entr.
: Laurey.