Paris Saint-Germain relied on an Angers SCO own goal in stoppage time on Saturday to win a record 11th Coupe de France title at the Stade de France. Not exactly the blistering performance many hoped for to close out the season but it’s indicative of what we’ve seen from this team all year.
Issa Cissokho’s header into his own net at the stroke of extra time was the difference and Angers will be disappointed with the result after keeping a clean sheet for nearly the entire match. Stéphane Moulin’s men conceded 67 percent possession and 16 total shots but still managed to shut out Les Parisiens who were lethargic going forward. Edinson Cavani and Angel Di Maria both had decent scoring opportunities throughout but neither were clinical enough. Julian Draxler was non-existent and was subbed off in the 72nd minutes (far too late if you ask me).
It hasn’t been our best season, but we have still managed to win three trophies. It’s not bad, even if we would have hoped for more. We’re happy this evening. We’re proud.–Nasser Al-Khelaifi, PSG.fr
PSG have now won 33 trophies since its inception in 1970 and Maxwell, who played in his last game for the club on Saturday, was apart of 15 of those celebrations. The Brazilian will go down as a club legend and will be missed both on the pitch and in the dressing room. After the match, Maxwell was overcome with emotion.
clap de fin pic.twitter.com/DVDaf1oWiC
— Philou (@philousports) May 27, 2017
Despite how the match ended, there were some bright spots for PSG. Marco Verratti picked up his intensity in the second half and made a few impressive passes to spark the offense. It wasn’t a great performance from the Italian and with rumors swirling about his potential departure to FC Barcelona, some supporters are open to the idea especially if Neymar is included in the deal.
Verratti régale #SCOPSG pic.twitter.com/7qSHqE3gB1
— Guillaume L. (@GuillaumL_) May 27, 2017
The man of the match for me has to be Thiago Silva. The Brazilian was everywhere defensively and made a series of important and impressive tackles whenever Angers tried to mount an attack. The 32-year-old showed once again why he is an elite defender and from the looks of it, he’s not ready to concede his place in the starting lineup to youngster Presnel Kimpembe just yet.
The summer will no doubt bring major changes to the club. In the Coupe de France final, we saw the last of Maxwell in a PSG shirt but it could also be the last time we see Unai Emery on the sideline despite club chairman and CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi stating that he is 200 percent certain he will remain as manager. If you remember, in April of 2016, Al-Khelaifi stated Laurent Blanc would remain manager after they were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by Manchester City before sacking him after the season. I still believe that if a better managerial option comes available, a change will be made.
Regardless if Emery is in or out, changes will be made. Blaise Matuidi’s future is uncertain and Serge Aurier’s legal issues (and dip in form) could force PSG to sell their right-back. Thiago Motta, Alphonse Areola, and potentially Di Maria could all be on their way out this summer.
We’ll discuss all of these changes on our upcoming PSG Talking podcast but before that, check out the best photos from the last match of the season.
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