PSG/Chelsea – Riolo highlights the special Parisian approach

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·12 March 2026

PSG/Chelsea – Riolo highlights the special Parisian approach

Paris Saint-Germain claimed a 5-2 victory against Chelsea (video highlights PSG/Chelsea) this Wednesday at the Parc des Princes in the first leg of the 2025-2026 Champions League Round of 16 (second leg on March 17). After this win, journalist Daniel Riolo spoke on RMC Sport. He highlighted what allowed Paris to make the difference despite the difficulties.

Riolo: “We were very perplexed, even the stadium.”

“I’m talking about courage or mental strength. I wouldn’t say that, physically, Paris didn’t suffer at the end of the match. But despite the suffering, they managed to take advantage of a huge mistake by the goalkeeper, which gifted a goal to the Parisians when they weren’t doing well. This mental strength that pushes the Parisians to always press, as Barcola did, was rewarded and brilliantly exploited by a top-class technical move from Vitinha, at a moment in the match when the Parisians were struggling and it seemed like the 2-2 scoreline would hold. We were very perplexed, even the stadium.”

Riolo: “It’s courage combined with individual talent.”

At 2-2, we thought Chelsea would settle for that, that Paris wouldn’t have the strength to go further. But a team is about the bench, it’s about substitutions. When you have a guy like Kvaratskhelia on the bench who comes on fired up and scores a stratospheric goal because he has the talent to do it… It’s courage combined with individual talent. There was Dembélé’s incredible move with a feint/double feint/finish on the counter, Vitinha’s finish, Kvara’s extraordinary curling shot. Let’s not forget that PSG has top-tier players like Dembélé, Kvara, and Vitinha, whom we’ve all seen play better than tonight, but he scored at the right moment.”

It’s quite rare for Riolo to be positive about PSG, so it’s worth enjoying. It’s a moment of calm around the club after a win, even if the Parisians were less dominant than in other matches where the result wasn’t positive.

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Of course, the quality of the opponent causes problems, and finding answers is interesting. Especially on the “physical” level, where one could expect Paris to suffer at times. It feels like Riolo overlooks part of Paris’s response in the second half by mentioning a really tough moment, then substitutions that changed the game.

That’s an asset. After a start with a high pace, PSG dropped off a bit. They still don’t have 90 minutes of very high intensity in their legs. They don’t stop putting in the effort, but there are difficulties. In the second half, Paris seemed to want to make Chelsea run and only strike at certain moments. They missed the mark a bit, as the Parisians probably would have liked to be a bit more dangerous.

The acceleration at the time of the substitutions is probably not a coincidence. Bringing on Kvaratskhelia against a Chelsea side that had run a lot is a weapon. Just like Lee Kang-In or Senny Mayulu. It’s nice to see the Parisian bench highlighted after so many “analyses” about a poorly managed transfer window and a PSG that had lost its way. In the end, Paris, to everyone’s surprise, still has weapons. Not just talent, but also collective desire and ideas.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.