Lee Kang-in (centre) scored a brace and assisted one of Bradley Barkola’s goals in Paris Saint-Germain’s 4-2 win over Angers Damien Meyer.
Text size
Rework after late game, schedule change
Lee Kang-in and Bradley Barkula each scored first-half goals as Paris Saint-Germain overcame their latest Champions League woes to win 4-2 away to Angers on Saturday, the perfect response to their closest rivals Monaco’s earlier win.
South Korea star Lee was one of five changes to Paris Saint-Germain’s squad made by coach Luis Enrique following the recent midweek defeat at home to Atletico Madrid, and he wasted little time in making an impact.
Lee opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a shot that crossed the goal line before Angers defender Jordan Lefort was able to clear it, then scored again just three minutes later from Marco Asensio’s shot.
Then Barkola, the top scorer in the French League, took center stage by scoring his team’s third goal just after the half-hour mark and adding another goal with a header from Lee’s cross to make it 4-0 in first-half stoppage time.
The French winger has now scored 10 goals in 11 Ligue 1 appearances this season, two more than Marseille’s Mason Greenwood.
Paris Saint-Germain took their foot off the pedal late and allowed 15th-placed Angers to score two goals in stoppage time at the end of the match through a wonderful strike from Esteban Lipole and a goal from Emmanuel Piumla.
However, that did not change the result, and while PSG have four points from four Champions League matches, they are unbeaten in Ligue 1, six points ahead of second-placed Monaco.
The Principality side – who have impressed in the Champions League so far in contrast to Paris Saint-Germain – staged a late fightback to win 3-1 over Strasbourg, with Ilese Bensghir scoring twice to move clear of Marseille in second place.
Liam Rosenior’s Strasbourg have not lost at home this season and took the lead just before the half-hour mark through Ivory Coast international Joila Dou.
It looked as if Monaco might pay the price for Brielle Embolo wasting a big chance in the first half when they were still trailing in the final quarter of an hour in Alsace.
Ilesi Ben Sghir celebrates scoring his team’s second goal in their victory over Strasbourg’s Sebastien Bouzon
However, the visitors were awarded a penalty when Ben Sghir’s shot was stopped by Diego Moreira’s arm in front of the goal line.
Moroccan international Cheb Benseghir scored from the penalty spot to equalize in the 79th minute and then converted Magnes Akliouche’s pass to put his team ahead with a minute to go in the 90th minute remaining.
A stunned Strasbourg conceded again right from the start of the second half when Saidu Sow won possession, allowing Nigerian substitute George Ilinykhina to run in and finish off the game.
It was a welcome return to Monaco’s domestic winning ways after back-to-back losses.
They are three points ahead of Marseille, with third-placed Roberto De Zerbi’s side suffering a shock 3-1 loss at home to Auxerre on Friday.
In another match on Saturday, Lens also staged a late comeback, with Nigerian midfielder Hamzat Ogediran and Adrian Thomasson scoring in the final five minutes, allowing them to win 3-2 at home to Nantes.
This result raised Will Still Lens to fifth place, one point behind its northern rival, Lille, who will visit Nice on Sunday.
