PSG vs. Troyes: Winners and Losers from Ligue 1 Game
Paris Saint-Germain extended their lead at the top of Ligue 1 on Saturday night, beating ES Troyes AC 4-1 at the Parc des Princes.
Laurent Blanc changed the formation for the first half, moving from his normal 4-3-3 to playing Lucas Moura and Angel Di Maria wide in a 4-4-2 system.
That allowed Edinson Cavani to play centrally, the centre-forward had a few early chances and volleyed PSG into the lead after 19 minutes.
In the end, Zlatan Ibrahimovic's penalty, Layvin Kurzawa's finish with the outside of his left foot and Jean-Kevin Augustin's strike helped the Parisians to a comfortable victory.
Thomas Ayasse grabbed a late consolation with a curling right-foot effort from outside the box, but Kevin Trapp will be annoyed he let it get past him.
Troyes battled for the opening 20 minutes but offered little in the way of a threat.
Here are the winners and losers from PSG's 4-1 win over Troyes.
Winner: Edinson Cavani
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After a run of just two goals in six games in Ligue 1, Edinson Cavani would have been delighted to get on the scoresheet on Saturday.
He could have had a first-half hat-trick, but the way he tucked away his volley at the back post showed the quality he possesses when he is feeling confident.
The only problem with Cavani is the number of chances he needs to get the goals. Paul Bernardoni pulled off an earlier save to deny the forward a goal in the opening two minutes—but Cavani was fully to blame for missing the target seconds later.
Late in the first half, the 28-year-old twisted and turned the Troyes defence—brilliantly creating his own chance—before firing high over the bar. That's everything you need to know about the striker in one move.
Loser: Thomas Ayasse
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Thomas Ayasse may have grabbed a late goal at the Parc des Princes, but that doesn’t take away from his mistake that let PSG take the lead on Saturday.
For the best part of 20 minutes, Troyes were holding their own—but you can't afford to make basic errors against a team like PSG.
Ayasse gave the ball away cheaply with the game still goalless, Angel Di Maria delightfully picked out Cavani and the Uruguayan placed the volley inside Paul Bernardoni's near post.
Although it was Cavani's third chance in the opening period, the ESTAC defence had played well, but lapses in concentration will always be punished against PSG.
Loser: Jean-Marc Furlan
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No one was expecting Troyes to pick up any points in the French capital, but that doesn't mean they are exempt from criticism.
With their backs against the wall and going long periods without the ball, it was not the ideal game for Benjamin Nivet to play from the start. The 38-year-old has been overstretched in recent weeks, and with more important games to come, Troyes manager Jean-Marc Furlan could have rested his talismanic playmaker.
The veteran played for 60 minutes and saw the ball in a few brief moments—perhaps Troyes would have benefited from having a more able runner to close down the PSG midfield.
Now, Troyes have to hope that Nivet is back to 100 per cent for the visit of Toulouse next weekend.
Winner: Jean-Kevin Augustin
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Once again, the young Parisian striker has come on and made an impact for PSG.
There was a huge element of fortune for his goal, but it was his own skill and ability that created the chance—his shot went straight through Bernardoni’s legs.
It was a reminder to Blanc that he has very capable young players on the bench, and perhaps he should use them more in situations like Saturday. Troyes were never likely going to put up much of a fight, and Augustin could have featured for much longer than the 10 minutes he received.
