PSG 6-2 Gamba Osaka: 5 Talking Points as Messi, Neymar and Mbappe score in dominant win
PSG finished their pre-season tour with a resounding 6-2 win over Japanese outfit Gamba Osaka. Christophe Galtier's men were in no mood to go easy on their opponents in their final pre-season game before their Trophee des Champions clash against Nantes on July 31.
Messi, Neymar and Mbappe hit goal for PSG https://t.co/gYi13lBTQA
Pablo Sarabia opened the scoring for Paris Saint-Germain near the half-hour mark before Neymar Jr. added some cushion to their lead from the spot in the 32nd minute. Gamba Osaka pulled one back through Keisuke Kurokawa just two minutes later but Nuno Mendes restored PSG's two-goal lead shortly afterwards.
Lionel Messi got on the scoresheet in the 39th minute to make it 4-1 for his side. An excellent bit of interplay between Neymar and Messi led to the former scoring his second goal of the game to make it 5-1 in PSG's favor.
Kylian Mbappe also got himself a goal from the penalty spot after Hiroto Yamami had added a sliver of respectability to the scoreline in the 70th minute for Gamba Osaka. Without further ado, let's take a look at the five talking points from PSG's 6-2 win today.
#1 PSG finish preseason tour with a real flourish
PSG were not in the mood to stand around and pull their punches against relatively inferior opposition. They came swinging out of the gates and took the game to Gamba Osaka.
It took them a while to score their first goal but they added as many as four goals in 11 minutes to take the game away from their Japanese opponents. PSG players like Vitinha and Pablo Sarabia were keen to impress and both players gave a good account of themselves in the middle of the park.
PSG finished their pre-season tour with a quality performance and their attackers in particular can be very proud of the work they've done ahead of the new campaign.
#2 Gamba Osaka weren't without their chances
Gamba Osaka were always expected to look second best to the star-studded Paris Saint-Germain team. Although they could have done better in defence, they were never reduced to the status of passengers.
Gamba Osaka did weave a few intricate passes and executed a number of decent passages of play. However, they lacked the edge to split the PSG defence open in the first half. But things got better for them as they grew into the game in the second.
Leandro Pereira missed a volley from a Ko Yanagisawa cross in the early stages after the restart. Mitsuki Saito registered another shot on target in the 65th minute but it was all a little too meek to beat Gianluigi Donnarumma. Jiro Nakamura also tested the Italian goalkeeper from range a few minutes later.
But their enterprise and hard work paid off in the 70th minute. Gamba Osaka's second goal was beautifully constructed and neatly finished. Saito picked out Yanagisawa's run into the right side of the area with great precision. Yanagisawa's accurate cut-back was finished off by Hiroto Yamami.
Two well-taken goals against one of the best teams in the world is no mean feat.
#3 The PSG backline needs more time to settle down
Gamba Osaka are a team that have struggled for goals in the league. They sit 16th in the J1 League table and have scored just 22 goals from 22 games this season. As such, when they came up against names like Sergio Ramos, Marquinhos and Presnel Kimpembe, they were expected to have a tough time.
But it didn't exactly pan out that way. They were given quite a few opportunities to try their luck at finding the back of the net. The PSG defenders kept backing away and allowed the Gamba Osaka attackers to spend a fair amount of time in the attacking third.
Simply put, the high-profile PSG defenders couldn't assert themselves against the Gamba Osaka attackers and could have easily ended up conceding a few more goals.
After Ramos' injury problems last season, PSG have been trying to integrate him into the starting XI. But it's clear that these three players will take some time to get used to playing alongside each other in the back three.
#4 The Messi-Neymar connection is alive and well
Neymar Jr. bagged a brace and registered an assist to cap off another excellent performance. Lionel Messi was having fun out there on the pitch and kept the Gamba Osaka defenders guessing with his neat and nimble footwork.
Messi played an excellent ball to slice through the Gamba defence and release Neymar into space. The Brazilian beat the the goalkeeper before slotting the ball home. Neymar and Messi have always shared a special connection on the football field.
It definitely did look like the connection is still alive and well and that this could really be an X-factor for PSG in the upcoming season.
Messi goal for PSG. Neymar with the nice assist
#KBNsports https://t.co/82x8CN7QG0
#5 Mbappe turns on the style after coming on
Kylian Mbappe looked eager to get into the thick of things as soon as he was brought on in the second half. He was lively from the outset and played an excellent pass to release Neymar into space shortly after coming on but the Brazilian couldn't make much of it.
Mbappe kicked on and a few minutes alter, he showcased his excellent footwork before releasing Bernat into the box. However, the wing-back's cut back missed everyone inside the area.
The Frenchman looked keen to participate in the goalfest and got on a driving run a few minutes but his effort was thwarted for a corner. Mbappe tried his luck once again, dragging the ball away from opponents but only finding the side netting with his finish.
He was desperate to score and that is the kind of hunger for goals that you'd expect from arguably the best forward in the world. He finally won a penalty in the 86th minute after he was brought down by Ryu Takao, who was beaten by the 23-year-old's burst of pace.
Mbappe slammed the ball home from the spot to score a well-deserved goal and made it 6-2 in favor of PSG.