Paris Saint-Germain games often have a Groundhog Day feel: they start with a rugby punt into the corner, fall into a pattern of PSG domination and, invariably, end in victory for Luis Enrique’s side. Be it in Ligue 1, the Champions League or at the Club World Cup, their opponents tend to deploy unambitious low blocks to break the inevitable pattern. But the tactic rarely stifles PSG’s forwards.
PSG have lost just three games in 2025; two of those defeats came in the league, after the title was already secured and attention had shifted towards a maiden European title. A low block against a side so fluid, liberated and technically gifted is submission masquerading as resistance.
Chelsea subverted the trend. So used to exerting territorial and possessional dominance, PSG were immediately put on the back foot. “We won the game in the first 10 minutes. It set the tone,” Enzo Maresca said after his London side lifted the trophy in New Jersey.
Chelsea’s aggressive, man-to-man, high-pressing approach produced a 3-0 win, but they did not dominate all phases of play. The new “world champions” were limited to 33% possession, conceded eight shots and were reliant on Robert Sánchez to produce brilliant saves, notably from Ousmane Dembélé early in the second half.
Chelsea lacked the in-possession structure to fully stifle Luis Enrique’s side, but they kept the dangermen – Dembélé, Désiré Doué, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – out of the game. By pushing so many players deep into the PSG half, Chelsea managed to stifle the influence of the swashbuckling Vitinha and sever the production lines. Chelsea’s persistent, intense and organised pressing did not limit PSG’s possessional dominance, but it did prevent them from establishing territorial dominance.
“It was difficult for us from the opening minutes,” Luis Enrique said. “I said that Chelsea are a good team. They showed it.” Chelsea unsettled PSG, giving them a taste of their own medicine. And for once, it was the Champions League winners who could not match that energy without the ball.
Kvaratskhelia’s lethargy in pressing and reluctance to recover down his flank was the source of Chelsea’s third goal, a lovely dinked finish from João Pedro. Sánchez, sometimes shaky when pressed, had the time to sweep the ball out to Malo Gusto, who set up Cole Palmer for his first goal. Levi Colwill too had ample time to set up Palmer to get his second, a mirror-image of his opener as he switched the play out to his right. Luis Enrique’s side lacked their characteristic verve and they were punished for it on three occasions as their chances of completing a clean sweep of trophies evaporated inside the first half.
Weaknesses not previously perceived or recognised as such were exploited. Nuno Mendes has been the best left-back in Europe this season. As well as bombing forward, he has also stifled players such as Mohamed Salah and Bukayo Saka in the Champions League. Against Chelsea he provided a reminder of his defensive fallibility and vulnerability to long balls played into his zone.
Lucas Beraldo, positioned next to Mendes in the PSG defence, would have been perceived as a target before the game. He was only starting in the absence of Willian Pacho, whose red card against Bayern Munich ruled him out. The Brazilian, who has now reportedly made a transfer request, has struggled when given chances, and it was no different against Chelsea. All three goals happened within his zone, even if he was not always directly responsible. “We used Cole and Malo on that side to create a little bit of an overload,” Maresca said.
End-of-season fatigue has been cited as a factor, as have the searing temperatures and the fact Chelsea had an extra day to prepare for the final. The PSG players have expended a lot of physical and mental energy over this 65-game campaign, but Chelsea’s season has lasted 64 games and they had to contend with the same conditions, described as “dangerous” by Enzo Fernández before the match.
Luis Enrique was not in search of excuses. “Over the course of the match, they deserved the win,” said the Spaniard, who recognised his opponent’s superiority on the day. “We aren’t losers. We didn’t fail. There was a champion. We fell but the loser is the one who doesn’t get up.”
The Spaniard had, nonetheless, lost his cool moments earlier, involved in what he described as an “avoidable” altercation with Pedro post-match. He, like his players – notably João Neves, who was sent off for a pull on Marc Cucurella’s hair – were all suddenly bereft of the composure that characterised their serene run to the Champions League trophy, superhumans rendered human once more.
So have Chelsea set the blueprint of how to beat PSG? Champions League-level sides may be wise to ditch the passive, defensive and submissive approach adopted by many last season. Fight quality with quality, if you can. But there is a quality imbalance in Ligue 1 and one that is only being widened. PSG are the only team truly immune to the financial problems gripping the domestic game and the €116m earned over their Club World Cup run only strengthens their financial situation.
Ligue 1 sides have spent only €160m so far this summer and more than half of that has been on signing players who were already at clubs on loan last season. PSG are yet to make their move in the transfer window, but they soon will – Nasser Al-Khelaifi has confirmed as much.
Ligue 1 sides cannot fight quality with quality; low blocks, the likes of which Parisians face week-in week-out, will still be seen as the way to attempt to level an uneven playing field. While their French rivals may not lick their lips at the flaws laid bare in New Jersey, their European rivals will.
This is an article by Get French Football News
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