Ousmane Dembele Shines as PSG Secures Dominant Victory over Monaco in Ligue 1

Current Ligue 1 champions, Paris Saint-Germain, have further solidified their dominance in the league by extending their unbeaten streak to 23 matches, while also stretching their lead at the top to a commanding 13 points after a convincing 4-1 victory over Monaco at the Parc des Princes.

The visitors had an early opportunity to take the lead within the first five minutes when Takumi Minamino, receiving a clever pass from Maghnes Akliouche, failed to convert, choosing to direct his shot straight at Gianluigi Donnarumma.

This missed chance proved costly as PSG quickly capitalised on their opponents’ wastefulness. A foul on teenage winger Désiré Doué by Denis Zakaria led to a free-kick, which Vitinha expertly curled over the wall and past a surprised Radoslaw Majecki to give the home side the advantage.

However, against the run of play, Monaco equalised after 17 minutes. Soungoutou Magassa and Breel Embolo combined beautifully before Zakaria, at an awkward angle, managed to slip the ball past Donnarumma at his near post, raising some questions about the Italian keeper’s positioning.

Adi Hütter’s side almost turned the match around when Minamino was once again set up by Akliouche; however, a fantastic tackle from Willian Pacho stopped the Japanese international in his tracks.

On the opposite end, following a neat pass from João Neves, Bradley Barcola opted to cut back rather than have a go at goal, ultimately wasting what could have been a scoring chance, before Doué shot wide after being set up by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who was making his home debut.

Despite dominating possession, Luis Enrique would have sighed in frustration as they went into half-time level. However, PSG regained the lead on 54 minutes when Barcola’s precise pass found Kvaratskhelia, who deftly evaded Christian Mawissa before sliding the ball past Majecki for his first goal at PSG.

Moments later, Kvaratskhelia could have added a second, but Majecki was able to parry his effort. Soon after, Ousmane Dembélé made it 3-1 by combining with Doué in a swift one-two before finishing strongly. Dembélé, alongside Gonçalo Ramos, missed chances to increase the lead further.

With Monaco struggling to pose any threat, the game lost some intensity as PSG cruised towards victory, and they capped off the night with a late goal from Dembélé, securing his second of the evening and solidifying his position as the league’s top scorer with 16 goals.

In fact, eight of PSG’s last nine league fixtures have seen both teams find the back of the net, so Enrique will be on the lookout for that elusive clean sheet when they travel to Brest on Tuesday for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League knockout tie. Monaco, meanwhile, maintains its position in third place in Ligue 1, with UCL action also on the horizon as they prepare to host Benfica next week.

Catch a quick summary of the match here.