Barcelona – Paris Saint-Germain: Late Checkmate For Luis Enrique Against Hansi Flick (1-2)

The clash between two tactical masterminds saw Luis Enrique come out victorious. After dominating the majority of the first half, Barcelona relinquished, giving the Parisians the chance to come back. The 2024/25 UCL winners asserted their superiority for the rest of the game, capitalizing on the Catalans’ defensive collapse.

Tactical analysis and match report by Achraf Lamdarhri.

We decided to make this article free to read. If you want to support our work, consider taking a subscription.

Barcelona topped La Liga after edging past Real Sociedad, capitalizing on their rivals Real Madrid’s 5-2 thrashing against Atlético Madrid. In the buildup to their game against Paris Saint-Germain, the Catalans lost Raphinha’s services after he picked up an injury against the Basque team. Nevertheless, Lamine Yamal and Alejandro Balde fully recovered from their setbacks. Moreover, the loanee, Marcus Rashford, appeared to operate as one of Barcelona’s main protagonists. The English winger recorded three assists in La Liga and led the Catalans to an away victory in St. James’s Park after he banked two goals against Newcastle United.

Paris Saint-Germain are still reaping the rewards of their 2024/25 season’s magnificent success. Ousmane Dembélé was elected the Ballon d’Or winner, and Luis Enrique and his club were crowned as men’s coach and club of the year, respectively. However, injuries hindered the Paris Saint-Germain squad. The last international break saw Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué suffer an injury with the French national team. Additionally, misfortunes never come alone. A suspected thigh problem left Khvicha Kvaratskhelia out of Enrique’s squad traveling to Barcelona.

The Spanish manager entered the game with Achraf Hakimi captaining the team, with Illia Zabarnyi filling Marquinhos’ position on the right side and partnering Willian Pacho in the center of the backline. Nuno Mendes was on a mission to halt Lamine Yamal’s brilliance on the left. Vitinha operated as a single pivot, with Warren Zaïre-Emery replacing João Neves at the last minute before kickoff. Fabian Ruiz functioned as a left central midfielder. Bradley Barcola and Ibrahim Mbaye hugged the touchlines with Senny Mayulu as a false nine.

Hansi Flick tweaked his starting eleven against the Parisian team. Jules Koundé and Gerard Martin resumed their positions as fullbacks. Ronald Araújo and Andreas Christensen made way for Eric Garcia and Pau Cubarsí to lead the defense on the big night. Pedri and Frenkie De Jong featured in midfield, with Dani Olmo replacing Dro Fernández to operate behind striker Ferran Torres. Marcus Rashford maintained his position on the left, whilst Lamine Yamal returned to feature on the right with the main eleven.

Barcelona has full access to the space between and behind the visitors’ lines

One minute in, Lamine Yamal waved his wand after he dribbled past Barcola and Vitinha near the touchlines, ala Zinedine Zidane. The Spanish winger cut inside, bypassing Nuno Mendes, to slide the ball behind Willian Pacho to Ferran Torres. The latter effort was blocked off by Illia Zabarnyi.

The visitors swung between defending in a 4-1-4-1 low block and a man-to-man high press. High up the pitch, one of Mayulu or Mbaye initiated the press with a curved run to block off the passing lane between the goalkeeper and the center-back, with the other running toward the ball-side central defender. Hakimi and Barcola jumped on Barcelona’s fullbacks, with the trio in midfield marking Pedri, De Jong, and Olmo. At the backline, Nuno Mendes battled against Lamine Yamal, with the center-backs stepping out on Marcus Rashford and Ferran Torres.

When the likelihood of dribbling past Nuno Mendes was low, Lamine Yamal tended to drop deep to pull the Portuguese midfielder out of his position. Not only that, but Lamine Yamal’s deeper movement baited the visitors forward, allowing him to curl a trivela pass into a runner in behind.

In the advanced buildup, Barcelona generated a numerical superiority on the backline, as Mayulu found himself defending against Eric Garcia and Pau Cubarsi. Pedri and Frenkie De Jong pinned Zaïre-Emery and Fabian Ruiz inside, with Jules Koundé luring Bradley Barcola forward. In the meantime, Dani Olmo’s lateral movement forced Vinitha to shift across. As a result, the hosts stretched Paris Saint-Germain vertically. That saw Ferran Torres come deeper between the lines. However, Willian Pacho aggressively stepped out.

Moreover, as aforementioned, Koundé operating wide behind the block dragged Barcola with him, with one of Barcelona’s double pivots drawing Fabian Ruiz’s attention. Consequently, Eric Garcia was able to prod the ball down the right inside channel onto Dani Olmo. The latter fed Lamine Yamal near the flanks, whereas Koundé advanced, drifting infield to access the space behind the backline. Bradley Barcola, tracking back, prevented Barcelona’s trio on the right side from threading passes.

Nevertheless, you can’t acquire all that you desire. The visitors exploited Jules Koundé’s advanced position to counter from the French right-back’s vacated spot. As a response, Frenkie De Jong retreated to cover Koundé’s position. However, he only evacuated the center for Paris Saint-Germain to switch the ball and access the opposite side, where Hakimi and Mbaye overloaded Gerard Martin.

14th minute: Barcelona’s buildup sequence. The Catalans take advantage of Nuno Mendes and Fabian Ruiz swapping positions to generate a numerical superiority in midfield. Thus, Frenkie De Jong picks out Dani Olmo. The latter squares the pass to Koundé and heads toward the space between PSG’s center-back and left back. Nuno Mendes jumps onto Lamine Yamal, who makes use of Pacho shifting across to shut down Olmo, and curls a pass in behind to the runner Torres. The latter dribbles past the goalkeeper and looks to put the ball home. However, Illia Zabarnyi clears the danger at the last moment.

Nineteen minutes in, Vitinha’s trivela pass went wrong. Lamine Yamal picked up the loose ball and initiated the turnover. He found Pedri around Vitinha. The former picked out Marcus Rashford, who took advantage of the vertical distance between Hakimi and the rest of the backline to square the pass to Ferran Torres. The latter put Barcelona ahead in the scoresheet.

Barcelona kept finding space between the visiting team’s lines. In the deep buildup, Szczęsny worked the ball toward Gerard Martin. In the meantime, Pedri and De Jong withdrew to bait their markers forward, with Dani Olmo pinning his man on the right inside channel. Therefore, Ferran Torres was able to come deeper between the lines to receive Martin’s diagonal pass and lay the ball off to Marcus Rashford.

Paris Saint-Germain regains control

In high-press situations, Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres engaged with the goalkeeper and Pacho, with Rashford functioning between Hakimi and Zabarnyi. Dani Olmo kept tabs on Vitinha, with Pedri and De Jong marking Paris Saint-Germain’s central midfielders. Jules Koundé jumped onto Nuno Mendes, whilst Gerard Martin, Pau Cubarsi, and Eric Garcia occupied the visitors’ front three. To bypass the hosts’ high press, one of the central midfielders tended to create separation to receive. From there, the visitors relied on Barcola dropping off down the left inside channel to drag Eric Garcia upward and flick the ball into the vacated space for Nuno Mendes.

On other occasions, Hakimi pushed on and rotated positions with Mbaye. Vitinha dropped in to form a situational back three, allowing Nuno Mendes to advance into midfield and switch places with Fabian Ruiz. Meanwhile, Mayulu dashed deeper between the lines. As a consequence, Paris Saint-Germain generated a numerical superiority in the middle of the park, allowing them to progress and obliging Barcelona to retreat.

23rd minute: Paris Saint-Germain buildup sequence. Mayulu drops in and drags Pedri across. Nuno Mendes inverts and ties De Jong’s hands down the left inside channel. Resultantly, the visitors create a three-versus-two situation. Zaïre-Emery picks up the ball to feed Hakimi on the right. Barcelona drops deeper with PSG overloading the right side to isolate Barcola on the left.

Twenty-four minutes in, Jules Koundé pushed high up the pitch. Lamine Yamal cut inside and stumbled over near the halfway line. Fabian Ruiz collected the ball and attacked with Barcola in a two-versus-one situation against Eric Garcia. The former dribbled past the latter; however, he pushed the ball far away, missing the chance of leveling the tie.

Barcelona’s defensive woes continued to make them vulnerable in counterattacks. Following a possession loss, the hosts’ double pivots tended to shift across to cover the wide channels. Consequently, it vacated the center for Luis Enrique’s team to work the ball out and access the opposite side through one of the central midfielders. However, the connection between PSG’s winger and midfielder nipped the counterattacks in the bud.

In deeper positions, Vitinha joined the backline as a situational center-back, with Zabarnyi filling the right back spot, leaving room for Hakimi to push on. The visitors’ wingers pinned Barcelona’s fullbacks, with Hakimi and Zaïre-Emery attracting De Jong and Pedri. The hosts’ front four kept close position to Paris Saint-Germain’s back four. However, Fabian Ruiz, coming deeper, overloaded Barcelona’s high press and presented himself as a free option for Vitinha down the right inside channel. Ruiz found Hakimi, who attempted to chip the ball over for Barcola. However, Gerard Martin was able to head the ball away and prevent PSG from exploiting the space behind.

Thirty-eight minutes in, Jules Koundé jumped onto Nuno Mendes in an attempt to neutralize the visitors’ numerical superiority against Lamine Yamal. Nonetheless, the French right back didn’t time his jump to ward off Mbaye and Mendes’ ball combination near the touchlines. The former, dropping in, pulled Eric Garcia out of his position, allowing Nuno Mendes to scamper forward. He cut inside and set Mayulu in front of Szczęsny. The nineteen-year-old successfully put the ball home, tying the score.

Four minutes later, Paris Saint-Germain looked to leverage Barcelona’s high line to their advantage. Willian Pacho, having the time on the ball, noticed Bradley Barcola cutting diagonally behind the Catalans’ backline. The former, with a pass over the top, set the latter in a one-on-one situation at the edge of the box. Barcola burst past his man; however, he blasted the ball over.

Barcelona’s high press frailties

Barcelona’s fullbacks had to cover long distances to jump onto the opposite fullbacks. Thus, Hakimi had the time to pick out Barcola darting deep and drawing Pau Cubarsi forward. In the meantime, Zaïre-Emery shifted near the flanks to unlock the wide combination and make use of the space behind Barcelona’s center-back. On the left, the visitors tended to capitalize on the hosts’ man-marking approach to find Mbaye in isolated situations against Koundé.

53rd minute: Paris Saint-Germain buildup. Pacho feeds Mendes near the touchlines. PSG’s midfielders manipulating Barcelona’s midfielders and Koundé arriving slightly late enable the left back to slide the ball into the space between the lines. Mayulu drops in to receive, carry forward, and square the pass to Barcola on the right side. The latter bypasses Gerard Martin and fires a shot into Szczęsny’s hands.

Not only did the distance between both teams’ fullbacks make the difference, but PSG’s midfielders being able to create separation with their markers tipped the scales toward Luis Enrique’s team. As a result, PSG’s fullbacks and midfielders were able to connect and ship the ball to the wingers, putting them in one-on-one scenarios.

It’s worth mentioning that both contenders were vulnerable in counterattacks. Half an hour gone, Vitinha cut off Olmo’s pass toward Lamine Yamal and initiated the transition by prodding the ball onto Zaïre-Emery behind Pedri. Hence, the visitors attacked in a five-versus-four situation. Meanwhile, Barcola indented to drag Gerard Martin inside and leave room for Hakimi to tap into the space behind Barcelona’s left back. Fortunately, Eric Garcia’s sliding tackle prevented the Moroccan from taking action. After regaining the ball, Garcia released Barcelona in a counterattack, generating a three-versus-three affair. Rashford switched the ball toward Lamine Yamal, who cut inside, but Nuno Mendes’ foul halted Yamal’s proceedings.

As previously indicated, Barcelona were able to find space between the visitors’ lines. Three minutes later, Pedri, De Jong, and Olmo enticed Paris Saint-Germain’s midfielders to press forward. That stretched the visiting team vertically, permitting Ferran Torres to withdraw and lay the ball off to Lamine Yamal. The latter set the former behind the defensive line to square the pass. Illia Zabarnyi’s clearance went to Dani Olmo, whose shot was blocked by Hakimi.

The Parisian team kept finding wide avenues to progress. In fact, involving the goalkeeper in the initial phase gave the visitors the edge in terms of numbers to initiate the buildup. Illia Zabarnyi had space in front of him to carry forward and pick out Barcola coming down the right inside channel. The latter pulled Pau Cubarsi out and took him, Gerard Martin, and Pedri out of the equation, setting Hakimi behind. The Moroccan right back switched the play toward the left side, where Lucas Hernandez and Nuno Mendes overloaded Jules Koundé.

69th minute: Pedri jumps onto Zabarnyi. Zaïre-Emery ties Rashford’s hands inside to allow access to Hakimi. Barcola’s run drags Gerard Martin backward, stretching the space between the lines for Mayulu to drop in. Fabian Ruiz spreads the ball toward the left. Meanwhile, Pedri and De Jong join the backline, leaving the space at the edge of the box exploitable by Ruiz coming from behind.

Paris Saint-Germain’s superiority, Barcelona’s fatigue

Six minutes later, similar dynamics from Paris Saint-Germain occurred. Zabaryni found Hakimi near the touchlines. Barcola fell back to receive and tuck in. Pedri shifted to shut Barcola down, but he only left Zaïre-Emery free in the middle of the park. That saw the Parisian team work the ball toward Lucas Hernandez, who fed Nuno Mendes in a one-on-one against Jules Koundé. At the same time, Goncalo Ramos darted behind Barcelona’s backline, providing Mendes with a passing option. Pau Cubarsi successfully prevented the Portuguese striker from shooting.

Barcelona were able to work the ball out wide and then slide an out-in, diagonal ball toward Robert Lewandowski after baiting Paris Saint-Germain’s midfielders forward. Nevertheless, the miscommunication between Barcelona’s striker and Marc Bernal paved the way for the visitors to turn over. Still seven minutes until the end, Ndjantou collected Lewandowski’s lay-off and picked out Lee Kang-in. The latter cut inside and curled his shot toward the left post.

Three minutes later, Marc Casado’s pass to De Jong landed at Vitinha’s feet. The visitors channeled the play toward the right, where Hakimi glided the ball behind Balde. Lee Kang-in drove toward the byline, drawing Balde, Casado, and Cubarsi’s attention to play the ball back to Hakimi. However, the latter cross ended up in Szczęsny’s hands.

Luis Enrique’s players exploited Barcelona’s defensive woes in counterattacks by the book. From a free kick at the edge of the box, Vitinha cut off Torres’ pass and released Lee Kang-in into space. Hakimi, outpacing Ferran Torres, sprinted down the right inside channel, galloping the length of the pitch to cut the ball back to Gonzalo Ramos. The latter’s pass wasn’t accurate enough for Ndjantou to pull the trigger.

The last minute saw Illia Zabarnyi slot a pass toward Lee Kang-in, who dashed down the right half-space and drifted infield. The South Korean curled his effort toward Ndjantou, who was free between the lines to punch the ball back to Vitinha. Paris Saint-Germain forced Barcelona to retreat with Hakimi and Lee Kang-in overloading Balde on the right. Hakimi squared the pass to Goncalo Ramos, who benefited from his initial offside position to break down Barcelona’s trap and tap the ball in, sealing the victory.

Takeaways

Barcelona conceded their first defeat of the season against their former manager, Luis Enrique. The Catalans dominated proceedings over the majority of the first half of the game. However, Paris Saint-Germain were able to impose themselves, regaining control and turning the tide, capitalizing on Barcelona’s defensive lapses. In the second part of the clash, fatigue crept in, allowing the Parisians to build momentum and assert their superiority to secure the three points as well.

Use the arrows to scroll through all available match plots. Click to enlarge.
Check the match plots page for plots of other matches.