A second-string Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) team lost to fourth-placed Strasbourg with a score of 2-1 on Saturday, marking another defeat for the Ligue 1 champions as the season comes to a close.
With the league title secured and their unbeaten run in Ligue 1 ended by a 3-1 loss to Nice in the previous match, the only remaining goal for the visitors was to maintain their 39-game unbeaten streak in away matches—a record in Europe’s top five leagues.
Manager Luis Enrique made significant changes to the lineup, keeping only João Neves from the starting team that won 1-0 against Arsenal in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final earlier in the week, seemingly resting key players for the upcoming return match.
This victory for Strasbourg placed them fourth in the league, equal on 57 points with Nice in third, and just one point behind second-placed Marseille. The top three teams secure places in the Champions League for the following season.
“I think it was a closely contested match between two teams aiming for Champions League qualification next season,” Luis Enrique commented. “It was a high-level game. While all the objectives I had in mind were achieved except for the result, it’s not worth dwelling on. I would also like to point out that we were close to a draw and had our chances.”
PSG fell behind after just 20 minutes when defender Lucas Hernández inadvertently redirected a flicked header from Strasbourg’s Mamadou Sarr into his own net, giving the hosts the lead.
Strasbourg extended their advantage in first-half stoppage time when Felix Lemarechal collected the ball outside the box and sent a beautiful curling shot into the far corner of the net.
Bradley Barcola scored for PSG less than a minute into the second half, completing a swift run from midfield before calmly finishing.
Despite a strong start to the second half and increased pressure toward the end of the match, PSG was unable to find an equalizer and suffered their second consecutive league defeat.
