PLAYER RATINGS | Lille 1-1 PSG: Les Parisiens held as Ethan Mbappé scores late equaliser | OneFootball

Paris Saint-Germain reclaimed top spot in Ligue 1 but were held to a draw by Lille, as Ethan Mbappé came on to score a late equaliser for the hosts — to the delight of his older brother, who was watching on from the stands.

The Match

Both teams teams involved in Sunday’s matchday closer were riding high after clinching high-profile wins on the continental stage. For the Parisians, who were looking to regain top spot from a resurgent Marseille, a worsening injury crisis forced Luis Enrique to name a lineup with four teenagers.

It was the hosts who took control of proceedings early on, with full-backs Thomas Meunier and Romain Perraud notably pushing up as Les Dogues enjoyed early possession. Bruno Génésio’s men kept the pressure on the PSG defence throughout the opening half hour, but would be let down by some poor decision-making in the final third.

This was particularly the case for Matías Fernández-Pardo, who was unable to make the most of his incisive runs past Beraldo, and find focal point Olivier Giroud. As for PSG, only a few forays into the Lille box from Bradley Barcola and Quentin Ndjantou appeared to trouble the hosts. The former, one of the few regular starters available for the trip up north, notably had a one-on-one chance on the counter just before half-time, which he dragged wide.

The start of the second half mostly followed the same pattern, with PSG dominating possession but failing to pierce through a well-organised Lille backline. That would change on the hour mark with the introductions of three senior players in Mendes, Hakimi and Vitinha. It was the former who, within minutes of coming on, would swing in a free-kick into the top-right corner to give Luis Enrique’s men the lead.

Lille would eventually find a way through, however. With his older brother watching from the stands, Ethan Mbappé came on to score the equaliser five minutes from time, with a shot from the edge of the box after some good work from Hamza Igamane. With Lucas Beraldo blocking his view, Chevalier was left with little time to react.

Despite letting two points slip, Les Parisiens did reclaim top spot from Marseille ahead of the October international break. Against a reinvigorated Lille side, a draw away from home is hardly a disastrous result for the injury-hit champions — although the misfiring performances of both Barcola and Ramos will be cause for concern. Les Dogues, meanwhile, brought an end to their losing streak in the league but could have aimed for all three points with more attacking ambition and better decision-making in the final third.

PSG player ratings

Lucas Chevalier, 6

Warren Zaïre-Emery, 4 – The 19-year-old was named captain for the evening as he filled in once again at right-back. He struggled to keep up with Fernández-Pardo during the first hour, before being moved back into midfield once Achraf Hakimi was brought on.

Lucas Beraldo, 6

Willian Pacho, 7 – Another mostly authoritative performance from the Ecuadorian, whose only misstep was being beaten by Mbappé’s feint for the equaliser.

Lucas Hernández, 7

Kang-in Lee, 5

Quentin Ndjantou, 5

Senny Mayulu, 6

Ibrahim Mbaye, 4

Gonçalo Ramos, 3 – The difference between Ramos’ performances as a starter and those as a (super) sub continues to grow. A few days on from scoring the match-winner in Barcelona, the Portuguese striker struggled to make an impact while leading the line against Les Dogues.

Bradley Barcola, 4

Selected Lille player ratings

Berke Özer, 6 – It would have been hard to top last Thursday’s once-in-a-career performance, but the Turkish goalkeeper continued his good form with a string of saves to keep out Bradley Barcola in the first hour. There was little he could do about Nuno Mendes’ free-kick.

Thomas Meunier, 6

Matías Fernández-Pardo, 6 – A frustrating first half for the Spaniard, who sped past both Beraldo and Zaïre-Emery with ease but failed to make anything of his forays into the PSG box. Replaced by Ethan Mbappé, who scored the equaliser with a well-placed shot from the edge of the box.

Olivier Giroud, 4

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin – reporting from Lille