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[2021-04-28 | Parc des Princes, Paris | 21:50 CET]

[UEFA Champions League Semi-Final - 1st Leg | Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 Bayer 04 Leverkusen]

[49’]

The corner was delivered by Demirbay, swinging it toward the penalty spot with pace. Tah rose highest, attacking the ball, but Navas came off his line decisively, punching it clear with both fists. The ball sailed out to the edge of the box, where Paredes chased it down first.

The Argentine midfielder controlled it on his chest, dropping it into his path, as he assessed his options. Before Baumgartlinger could shut him down, he spotted Neymar making a run down the left channel. He threaded a pass towards the right channel where the Brazilian had drifted, catching him in stride.

With the counter initiated, the home side sprang forward with Neymar in the lead, who charged head-on at Frimpong. The full back rapidly side-stepped using all his talents to hold him off or slow him down. The Brazilian didn’t slow down; his close control was immaculate as he approached the halfway line with Frimpong continuing to backpedal desperately.

As Amiri and Rakim tracked back from behind, Neymar snapped into action, performing a quick elastico, the ball rolling from right to left in one fluid motion, forcing Frimpong to commit. The Dutch fullback lunged in, but Neymar had already nudged the ball past him with the outside of his left boot, skipping around the challenge with a burst of acceleration.

Rakim raced him to the loose ball but got there a second later, lightly bumping shoulders. The two were about to fight for the ball again, but a red shirt came sweeping along the ground, sweeping the ball away as they both jumped out of the way. "Wendeeell with the stop!" Derek Rae exclaimed as the ball was poked out for a throw-in.

"A heart stopper for sure," Robson added as the camera panned over the home fans with hands over their heads in disappointment. "The home side saw that counter in the back of the net, but it remains a highlight."

[55’]

In the 55th minute, following an unanswered cross from Di María, which was cleared by Tah, ending up with Baumgartlinger at the edge of the box. The Austrian midfielder turned driving forward at pace, his head up, scanning for options. He bumped into Paredes, the two of them battling it out all the way to the halfway line, but the Leverkusen midfielder remained in control.

Seeing Verratti closing in, he sent the ball wide to Rakim on the left, who had dropped back to just inside the final third. Florenzi immediately pressed against him from behind, trying to apply pressure. He didn’t try to turn; instead, he played it back to Wendell, who had overlapped. The Brazilian fullback took one touch, then drove forward, crossing the final third with pace.

Wendell played it inside to Amiri in the centre Chanel as he continued his run, drawing defenders. The playmaker turned away from the nearby Paredes sharply, spotting Rakim making a diagonal run from the left, cutting inside toward the centre. He connected the pass narrowly, avoiding Verratti’s slide tackle into Rakim’s path.

The teenager controlled it with the outside of his right boot, his first touch taking him to the top of the D. Marquinhos stepped up to close him down, but Rakim performed a quick La Croqueta, dragging the ball from right to left, skipping past the Brazilian’s challenge. The move took him away from the Brazilian, but he came right into Kimpembe’s path.

The French defender converged on him from the right, and Rakim moved his right foot to flick the ball into Shick’s path beyond the defender. Kimpembe read it, moving to step across to intercept him, but Rakim had faked the pass, his body moving back to the left. Instead of jabbing the ball with the outside of his right foot, he wrapped around it, cutting the ball back onto his left foot.

His sudden movement caused him to be head-on with the French defender as he stepped into his path. Both players remained almost stationary for a split second; it was but a minuscule second as Rakim dropped his left shoulder, feinting to break through directly.

Kimpembe lunged in immediately, leg fully outstretched, but he miscalculated the winger’s move, and his boot caught his shin guard mid-movement. The teenager went down immediately, rolling once before sitting up, raising his arms to the referee. "Kimpembe brings him down!" Drury exclaimed. "That’s a dangerous free kick in Rakim Rex territory!"

*(FWEEET!)*

The referee’s whistle blew immediately, pointing to the spot just outside the box from twenty-two yards out. The referee wasn’t finished as he reached into his pocket, pulled out a yellow card, and held it out to Kimpembe, who didn’t protest. Just because the Frenchman didn’t protest didn’t mean the fans stayed silent.

20,000 voices rained down a torrent of boo’s, echoing around the Parc des Princes, showering the referee with whistles. "They may not be happy, but the referee got it right in this case." Rae analysed after a look at the replays. "Kimpembe was late, plain and simple, no other way to slice. A harsher referee might have sent him off directly."

[57’]

The PSG wall formed quickly, four players linking arms in a tight line: Verratti, Paredes, Icardi, and Florenzi. Navas positioned himself just off-centre, barking instructions in Spanish, adjusting the wall to cover the near post while he guarded the far side.

Rakim placed the ball carefully, smoothing out a divot in the grass with his boot. He stepped back five paces, hands on his hips, eyes flicking between the wall and the goal. Demirbay jogged over, sharing a short conversation before joining the rest of the team in the hum blender. The referee completed his final checks, making sure both teams were ready, then raised his whistle.

*(FWEEET!)*

"We’ve seen him convert from this spot many of times, and he’ll be hoping for another," Rae commented as Rakim began his approach, side-stepping to the left, approaching the ball at an angle. "He was always going to shoot!"

At the commentators exclaim his right foot met the stationary ball, sending it curling over the wall with a vicious spin. The ball sailed toward the top right corner, bending abruptly in the air like a sudden course adjustment. Navas between the sticks tracked it the entire way, launching himself across his goal, arms fully extended.His fin

His fingertips brushed the bottom of the ball, just barely, but it was enough to change its trajectory. The ball clipped the outside of the post with a hollow *THUNK*, bouncing back into play. Schick pounced on the rebound at the edge of the six-yard box, striking it first-time with his right foot. Marquinhos threw himself in front of it in desperation, and the ball cannoned off his foot, spinning wide for a corner.

"OFF THE POST!" Drury roared. "Rex is so close! But Navas prevails, and Marquinhos blocks the rebound! This is heartwrenching for the visitors!"

"Heart-wrenching it may be, but the PSG fans can finally take a breath," Tyldesley added as the home fans began singing, showing their support fully for their number one. "PSG will need to nip this in the bud before he gets hot. We’ve seen what he can do given enough room!"

[65’]

In the 65th minute, Pochettino had seen enough as the Leverkusen side began a spell of relentless speed-focused wing attacks. The number of headers between the two centre-backs and Schick was enough to give him a headache. He made a tactical adjustment, bringing on Danilo Pereira for Icardi, shifting to a more defensive 4-5-1 with Mbappé moving up to become the lone striker, while Neymar moved to the left wing.

The midfield now featured Danilo and Paredes as holding midfielders, and Verratti as the creative brain. Di María remained on the right as they began sitting deep, calmly absorbing pressure, waiting for the counter. Danilo and Paredes anchored the middle, while Verratti floated between the as PSG’s midfield five sat deep in two banks, clogging the central channels, forcing Leverkusen wide.

Baumgartlinger collected the ball in the centre circle, turned away from Verratti’s press, and played it wide to Rakim on the left. The teenager controlled it on the run, immediately facing Florenzi, who felt more confident facing him now that the inside channel was blocked.

Not giving up, he performed a quick stepover, then another, trying to create separation. Florenzi didn’t bite, staying compact, shepherding him wide. Rakim tried to cut inside, but Danilo stepped up, blocking the lane, forcing him to play it back, finding Wendell on the overlap. The Brazilian fullback swept the ball with his momentum, whipping in a cross toward the penalty spot.

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TO BE CONTINUED...