The Parisians will most likely be champions of France at the end of the Ligue 1 season, but these last weeks before the summer break seem more like a way of the cross than an extended party. Sunday, April 30, the capital club was beaten again in the league, this time by Lorient (3-1), on its lawn at the Parc des Princes and in front of supporters who did not hesitate to whistle their players at the end of the match as at half-time.
Never in the rhythm, the Parisians quickly conceded the opener on a goal from Enzo Le Fée with a left-footed recovery (15th). And if the match had started badly, the sequel was even worse for PSG. Five minutes later, defender Achraf Hakimi was sent off after picking up a second yellow card, leaving his side down to ten for most of the game. To get by, PSG tried to rely, as often, on their local hero, Kylian Mbappé. Number 7 came very close to playing the role of hero again in a rather amazing way.
Thinking he was the victim of a foul in the separation area, the Blues striker stopped playing – just like the Lorient defense. But he was the first to understand that the referee hadn’t whistled, and went to steal the ball that Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo had just put on the ground, to score what is undoubtedly the most improbable of his career. Still, this gag equalizer will not have revived PSG, on the contrary.
Angers officially relegated to Ligue 2
In the 39th minute, defender Darlin Yongwa took care of restoring the advantage to the Merlus with his right foot, before resisting with his colleagues from the rear guard to the Parisian waves falling on the Lorient goal. It was finally the visitors who managed to score a final goal again, on the counter-attack, by striker Bamba Dieng (89th).
At the bottom of the standings, this 33rd day of Ligue 1 sounded the death knell for the last hopes of keeping Angers in the top flight. The SCO was beaten by Rennes (4-2), and is now mathematically guaranteed to descend to the second division. The club has been stuck in last place in the standings for many months. This defeat thus puts an (almost) end to a nightmarish season, during which Angers changed coach twice, and was sentenced to a recruitment ban for the next two transfer windows on Thursday.
