Dembele hits back at doubters as PSG overwhelm Manchester City 4-2 in Champions League
Dembele hits back at doubters as PSG overwhelm Manchester City
Ousmane Dembele joked about taking another vacation after he helped Paris Saint-Germain dismantle Manchester City 4-2 in the Champions League on Wednesday.
The Ballon d'Or winner had been given time off by PSG boss Luis Enrique last week, meaning he missed a 3-1 win over Le Mans in Ligue 1. He returned to the fold against City and went on to score and assist in a victory for the two-time European champions.
Goals and key moments
Desire Doue opened the scoring in the 13th minute, before crossing for Dembele to head home PSG's second just 99 seconds later. Vitinha made it 3-0 in the 32nd minute, although City threatened a second-half comeback. Erling Haaland scored twice, either side of a Gianluigi Donnarumma error that gifted the visitors a fourth. That goal ultimately proved enough, despite Ferran Torres missing a late penalty.
Dembele assisted PSG's fourth goal, with Maghnes Akliouche benefiting from Donnarumma's blunder.
Record-breaking start
PSG have already scored 10 goals in the Champions League this season, and no side has ever scored more in the first two matches of a campaign in the competition.
Dembele has now been directly involved in 33 goals in 42 Champions League games for PSG (20 goals, 11 assists). Only Kylian Mbappe (65 in 64 games) and Neymar (37 in 41) have recorded more goal involvements for the club in the competition, with Dembele now level with Edinson Cavani (33 in 54).
PSG are unbeaten in 10 Champions League matches against English opponents (W8 D2), scoring 26 goals while conceding just 10 in that run.
Dembele responds to critics
Dembele had a laugh at the expense of the club's critics. "We don't care at all that people doubted us," he told Canal+. "It's October, it's the second Champions League match, and we're staying focused. We know that in the first part of the season, we have to be on track and then prepare for the second half of the season.
"Did I want to set the record straight? Not at all, there was the international break and then I went on vacation. Besides, I might ask for another vacation! I've been criticised for 10 years, so that's not going to change, is it?"
Luis Enrique praises attitude but admits luck
Luis Enrique praised his side's approach but acknowledged their fortune. "I love our attitude, our commitment," he told TNT Sports. "We try to win every match, we don't stop at one or two goals. We try to continue scoring and continue playing the same way. It's nice to feel that."
He added: "We were lucky, because in the second half we could have conceded four goals."