January 24, (THEWILL) – A 4-0 win over Reims on Sunday night means Paris Saint-Germain increased their advantage at the top of Ligue 1 to 11 points. The hosts dominated possession in the first half as expected, but were unable to create clear-cut chances.
Reims did pose a threat on a few occasions, most notably through Newcastle target Hugo Ekitike, who hit the crossbar on the half-hour mark.
PSG scored before the break despite being unimpressive for much of the first half, with Marco Verratti blasting in off the post with his left foot after the ball broke sweetly on the edge of the box.
At first, the second period followed a similar pattern. Despite PSG having most of the ball, Reims fired some warning shots, with Dion Lopy hitting a shot high over the bar when he should have done better.
They were made to pay for their blunder when PSG scored three goals in a row to win the game.
Sergio Ramos opened his PSG account in scrappy manner just after the hour mark, scuffing the ball home after Reims failed to clear their lines from a corner.
Soon after, Verratti scored his second, however he did receive a big helping hand from a double deflection, with the goal being chalked up as an own goal by Wout Faes.
PSG added a fourth goal 15 minutes from the end, helped once again by a deflection. Kylian Mbappe burst through the Reims defence and calmly picked out Danilo Pereira on the edge of the box, who side-footed into the net off a Reims defender.
Mauro Icardi nodded a free header into his own arm in the closing moments and PSG thought they had a fifth, but the referee correctly ruled out the goal for handball.
Although Reims’ perfect run on the road came to an end with the loss, defeating Pochettino’s side was always going to be difficult. They will seek to bounce back in their next league match against Bordeaux, while PSG will host Rennes at the Parc des Princes next month.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
