Paris Saint-Germain routinely handled their first match against Brest in the Champions League play-off four days ago, securing a significant 3-0 advantage ahead of the second leg next Wednesday in Paris. However, Luis Enrique still decided to rest some of his best players for the away match against Toulouse. Despite his team securing a 1-0 victory, thanks to Fabián Ruiz’s goal in the 52nd minute, the Spanish coach’s concerns proved justified. Before the match, he had warned about his counterpart, Carlos Martínez Novel (40).Fabian Ruiz stats vs Toulouse ✨◉ 63 Minutes played ◉ 1 Goal◉ 84 Touches◉ 2/3 Big chances created◉ 2 Shots◉ 10 Passes into final third◉ 1 Dribble◉ 4 Accurate longballs◉ 1 Block◉ 1 Tackle◉ 1 Interception◉ 2 Duels wonHandling criticism well. #PSG #TFCPSG pic.twitter.com/0r9gb1CTZr— Adhil 11 🇮🇳 (@adhil_11) February 15, 2025 The young strategist knows his more experienced colleague very well. They previously worked together at Barcelona—while Luis Enrique managed the first team, Novel was in charge of the youth categories. His thorough study of Enrique’s tactics became evident last season.”Their coach knows our style of play well and defends excellently against us. Last season, we didn’t manage to beat them in the league. In fact, they defeated us 3-1 at the Parc des Princes. It will be a tough match. He certainly knows how to create problems for us,” said the PSG coach before the game. And that’s exactly how it played out.The Spaniard remains a Saint for another two yearsDespite PSG’s dominant possession, they struggled to break down their opponent’s resistance. In the first half, 19-year-old Guillaume Rest, a member of France’s Olympic team, made several impressive saves. However, toward the end of the first half, he had to be substituted due to an injury. It was unclear what exactly happened, as he appeared to feel discomfort after catching the ball without any contact from an opposing player. Toulouse’s medical team responded quickly, but Novel had to make a substitution two minutes before halftime.’We are better without Mbappe’Norwegian goalkeeper Kristian Haug, who returned this winter from a loan spell at Odd Greenland, took his place. He was immediately put to the test but managed to keep a clean sheet until the break. However, early in the second half, PSG took the lead. Haug managed to deflect a header from Pache onto the crossbar following a corner, but the ball rebounded directly to Fabián Ruiz, who had no trouble slotting it into the empty net.Biggest spenders in the January transfer window: The unlikely 10Toulouse fought hard for an equalizer, but despite having a promising coach, the 10th-placed side currently lacks the squad to truly challenge PSG. They had a few decent counterattacks and long-range attempts, registering a double-digit shot count, but only forced Safonov into action on a few occasions. For the final 30 minutes, Luis Enrique brought on Dembélé, Vitinha, and Marquinhos, followed by Gonçalo Ramos—likely to keep them warmed up ahead of the rematch against Brest. PSG didn’t push too hard for a second goal but efficiently maintained their 1-0 lead while avoiding any unnecessary injury risks.LIGUE 1 – MATCHDAY 22 Friday Brest – Auxerre 2-2 (0-1)/Ndiaye 60, Ajorque 79 – Perrin 18, 74/Saturday Olympique Marseille – Saint-Etienne 5-1 (1-0)/Gouiri 27, 60, Greenwood 50 pen, Murillo 58, Rabiot 77 – Stassin 79/Monaco – Nantes 7-1 (2-1)/Biereth 44, 54, 64 pen, Minamino 45, Ben Seghir 49, Ilenikhena 81, 90+5 – Abline 4/Toulouse – PSG 0-1 (0-0)/Ruiz 52/Sunday 17.00: (5.40) Montpellier (3.90) Olympique Lyon (1.70)19.15: (5.50) Le Havre (3.70) Nice (1.67)19.15: (1.90) Lens (3.60) Strasbourg (4.50)19.15: (2.05) Reims (3.50) Angers (4.00)22.45: (2.60) Rennes (3.25) Lille (2.80)***odds are subject to change***
