- PSG Women win their third trophy in the last 4 years
- Fleury fail to complete a historic run in the French Cup
- Lieke Martens offers her team the trophy
In a rather boring final, PSG narrowly surpassed Fleury (1-0) this Saturday afternoon, under the Montpellier sun, winning the fourth trophy in the club’s history in the competition.
But what eventually matters for the Parisian club is that trophy. The first of possible 2 if they manage to win the playoffs of the D1 Arkéma.
A proof of the club’s consistency at the highest French level in women’s soccer.
However, this Coupe de France final was unfortunately boring. Sakina Karchaoui’s teammates seemed physically worn out by a grueling double opposition against Olympique Lyonnais in the Champions League semi-final, and Fleury’s sole focus on defense made it did not help either.
Not enough to excite the approximately 8,000 spectators present at the Mosson stadium in Montpellier.
The Parisiennes won the trophy at the end of a long-closed final. Following a first period without any chances, the match settled after the expulsion of Parisian defender Thiniba Samoura (66′).
Lieke Martens Comes To The Rec
Thanks to Jade Le Guilly and Lieke Martens, PSG opened the scoring with a cross from the Dutchwoman, which neither Grace Geyoro nor the opposing goalkeeper Manon Heil touched and which lodged in the back of the net (1-0, 73′).
Fleury failed to equalize, and it was even Paris who could have doubled the lead, thanks to dangerous situations from Geyoro (80′) and Tabitha Chawinga (81′).
This final logically went to PSG’s favor who looked more dangerous.
The D1 Arkéma Play Offs
Now that the Coupe de France title is sealed, the 2 teams have one last competition to play in. PSG, assured of finishing second in the league, will play its playoff semi-final against Paris FC (3rd), Saturday, May 11 (9 p.m. Paris time).
As for Fabrice Abriel’s squad, they must first secure their fourth position to head to the Groupama Stadium in Décines to face the league leaders, OL, in the other semi-final.
For this to happen, they will need to negotiate their last match of the regular season, Wednesday, May 8 against Montpellier (4:30 p.m. Paris time).
What Did They Say?
Speaking to France 4 following her team’s defeat, Charlotte Fernandes said: “We missed opportunities. We wanted to win this final. We missed some chances, but PSG weren’t really dangerous either. We wanted to reach the penalties at least.”
PSG’s captain, Grace Geyoro, said: “It was a nice atmosphere but the conditions were difficult, with the heat.”
Then, when asked about whether she touched the ball, she laughed and said, “I think I did not touch the ball, but I bothered the goalkeeper. We received a red card early in the match, but we held on.”
The Starting Elevens
PSG: Picaud – Vangsgaard (Le Guilly, 70′), Samoura (🟥, 66′), Gaetino, De Almeida, Karchaoui – Geyoro (cap), Groenen, Albert (Martens, 64′) – Baltimore (Fazer, 90’+ 2), Chawinga
Fleury: Heil – Meffometou (Konan, 85′), Diakité, Swaby, Fernandes – Jaurena, Le Garrec (cap), Dafeur – Grabowska (Kamczyk, 79′), Louis, Kouassi.
