With heads held high, the Parisians lose in the final against Lyon | OneFootball

After an intense and hard-fought final, the Paris Saint-Germain women's team lost the Arkema D1 final to Olympique Lyonnais (1-2). Here's a look back at the match.

It was a dream match-up to round off an exciting campaign on all fronts, as the Parisians took on their arch-rivals Olympique Lyonnais to close the curtain on the 2023-24 Arkema D1 season. Jocelyn Prêcheur had concocted a seductive, attacking line-up for this duel at the pinnacle of French football, with all his key players present at kick-off. The starting line-up was led by the inevitable Katoto-Chawinga tandem in attack, while Sandy Baltimore provided support for our captain Grace Geyoro in midfield.

A Lyon-Paris Saint-Germain match always promises to be a high-level showdown. The start of the match quickly demonstrated this. The first duels, the first tackles, the first calls set the tone, foreshadowing a fierce battle between two well-oiled, attacking teams. There wasn't time to settle in. It was our Rouge et Bleu who almost struck first, as Tabitha Chawinga, well placed, unleashed a powerful shot that skimmed the frame of Endler's goal (4').

There was no doubt that Paris Saint-Germain had put in a collective performance worthy of the occasion in this fast-paced early game. But sadly the rest was not to be for Jocelyn Prêcheur's players. Delphine Cascarino's first real chance of the game came after a well-worked Lyon attack (1-0, 18'). Frustrating, but not discouraging.

Far from being outdone, our players tried to step up a gear and hit back quickly. They could even have equalised a few minutes later, but Sandy Baltimore stumbled after a fine technical move (21'). On the other hand, Lyon demonstrated a cold realism by capitalising on a confused situation in the box. After winning a high ball, Dumornay recovered well to feed Kadi Diani, who made no mistake to score the second (2-0, 22').

In this context, our Rouge et Bleu had no choice: they had to revolt very quickly to try to create doubt for their opponents and to map out the beginnings of a fantastic turnaround. The Parisians pulled out all the stops, exploiting their preferred attacking channels to break through Lyon's defence. Tabitha Chawinga, as tireless as ever from deep, again sent a shot goalwards thanks to the quality of her runs, but her shot was saved by Endler (36').

There was still half-time to recover. Our Rouge et Bleu team showed tremendous perseverance and continued to face the headwinds with great character. They had to, against a team driven by their home crowd. The two teams continued to fight intensely, creating more and more chances as fatigue set in. And this time, Tabitha Chawinga was rewarded for her efforts, converting her chance to reduce the deficit before the final quarter of an hour (2-1, 73').

It was a suffocating end to a match in which our Rouge et Bleu made every effort to break down Lyon's dwindling defence... Unfortunately, their efforts were not rewarded. Right to the end, the Parisians tried everything they could to snatch an equaliser, but the score did not change.

At the end of this frustrating scenario, Paris Saint-Germain lost by a narrow margin in this intense and hotly contested final. It was the end of a rich campaign, marked by the return of the play-offs, with the special charm of these decisive matches. After this rewarding experience, the Paris Saint-Germain women's team can look forward to the future with the utmost ambition.

--

Access all Paris Saint-Germain news on PSG.FR and PSG Official app.