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MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) – Brazil’s Neymar scored twice and compatriot Fred was sent off as Paris St Germain beat 10-man Manchester United 3-1 at Old Trafford on Wednesday night to open Group H of the Champions League.
United, PSG and RB Leipzig, all with nine points heading into the final round of matches next week, in which the English team take on the German club and the French champions host Istanbul Basaksehir.
United knew one point would be enough to secure a place in the round of 16 and they really should have ended the game long before Marquinhos put PSG 2-1 up in the 69th minute and Fred received their marching orders a minute later. .
It was surprising that Fred was still on the field at that stage having received only one yellow card following a VAR review of a head-to-head clash with Argentine Leandro Paredes.
The pair were embroiled in a strong challenge later in the first half for which the Argentine was booked, but despite having many options on the bench, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer decided not to replace Fred, a costly mistake.
Neymar put PSG ahead in the sixth minute after Kylian Mbappé’s shot was deflected and landed kindly on the former Barcelona striker, who sent the ball into the lower corner.
United tied in the 32nd minute with a Marcus Rashford shot that deflected off Danilo’s outstretched leg to beat PSG goalkeeper Keylor Navas.
United created several good chances after the break, but failed to advance.
After some good work from Edinson Cavani and Rashford on the right, Anthony Martial shot over the bar from a promising position.
Cavani was dispatched and threw a bold chip on the advancing Navas, but the ball hit the crossbar: Marquinhos brilliantly blocked Martial’s follow-up shot.
The Brazilian defender hit the crossbar with a looped header on David De Gea and the Spanish goalkeeper made a great save to avoid a low shot from substitute Mitchel Bakker.
Then came the game-changing minute: a half-cleared corner rattled around the area before Marquinhos put it in.
Fred was sent off after a foul on former United midfielder Ander Herrera when things fell apart for the hosts.
Paul Pogba shot out and approached with a superb volley from outside the box, but when United threw men forward, they left holes in the back.
Mbappé advanced with a quick run from deep but wide-footed before the result was resolved as Rafinha prepared Neymar for a simple touch.
PSG now have the head-to-head advantage over United and the easier task on paper next week, while Solskjaer’s men have a lot to do in Leipzig.
(Reporting by Simon Evans, edited by Ed Osmond)
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