(Football news) On the opening day of play, Les Parisiens defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-0, while Eddie Howe’s team battled to a scoreless draw away at AC Milan to mark their return to the big time.
The Rossoneri huffed and puffered but were left to regret profligacy on matchday one as Newcastle returned to the tenacious defensive strategies that played a significant role in ending their 20-year exile from Europe’s premier tournament. Newcastle were unfazed by the San Siro atmosphere throughout their match with the Rossoneri.
Since returning home from Milan with a well-earned point one that places them second in Group F standings, Newcastle has continued to demonstrate that they are indestructible at the back. Marco Sportiello had to be on guard to prevent Howe’s men from stealing all three points.
Howe’s in-form team ended September in magnificent fashion with nine goals over 180 minutes of football – eight in a record-breaking obliteration of Sheffield United, and one to knock Manchester City out of the EFL Cup in the third round. They came into the game on Wednesday in top form on the back of a three-game winning streak.
Howe’s team easily defeated Burnley 2-0 at the weekend thanks to goals from Miguel Almiron and Alexander Isak, extending their streak of clean sheets to five straight games in all competitions since their 3-1 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion, which is now firmly consigned to history.
Only five competitive home losses have occurred for Newcastle since the beginning of 2022, three of which came against Liverpool. Wednesday’s match will mark the first Champions League game at St. James’ Park since August 2003, when Sir Bobby Robson’s Magpies were eliminated from qualifying against Partizan on penalties.
Speaking of penalty kicks, PSG’s opening goal in the 2023–24 Champions League season came from 12 yards out. Achraf Hakimi quickly followed Kylian Mbappe’s goal against Borussia Dortmund, which he had scored just four minutes earlier.
After renowned managers like Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino, and Christophe Galtier were unable to break PSG’s continental curse, Les Parisiens turned to Barcelona treble winner Luis Enrique in an effort to finally become a household name in Europe. However, his team no longer inspires the same level of dread in the hearts of rival teams.
PSG dropped points for the fourth time in seven Ligue 1 games this season, being held to a 0-0 draw by Clermont at the weekend, following a statement 4-0 win over Classique rivals Marseille in front of a star-studded crowd (Thierry Henry and Selena Gomez were among those present during that Parc des Princes pummeling).
PSG can at least compete with Newcastle on the defensive resilience front – keeping clean sheets in three straight games – and they have gone unbeaten in nine consecutive away games since their fatal 2-0 loss to Bayern Munich seven months ago. However, they are already playing catch-up in the title race as they linger in fifth place in the standings.
Les Parisiens lost at the Allianz Arena, marking their unlucky 13th Champions League away game without keeping a clean sheet. Les Parisiens last defeated Istanbul Basaksehir away from home in October 2020. The Magpies’ supporters have plenty of reason to be optimistic going into their team’s first competitive matchup against the Parisian powerhouses.
Also read: AC Milan set to face Borussia Dortmund
