Sporting Portugal/PSG: Chevalier next after Donnarumma, Petit warns

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·22 January 2026

Sporting Portugal/PSG: Chevalier next after Donnarumma, Petit warns

Paris Saint-Germain and Sporting Portugal faced off this Tuesday at the José Alvalade Stadium as part of the 7th matchday of the 2025-2026 Champions League. The match ended with a Parisian defeat, 2-1 (video highlights Sporting Portugal/PSG). After the match, former French international and now consultant Emmanuel Petit spoke to RMC Sport. He notably criticized Lucas Chevalier (24-year-old goalkeeper), who suffers from comparisons with Gianluigi Donnarumma (26, who left for Manchester City last summer).

Petit: “If you want to go all the way and win big titles…”

“He’s not at fault for the first goal, but on the second goal… Donnarumma, who was often rightly criticized, was there for the big matches last year. On the rare occasions when he was needed, the guy delivered.

His positioning is completely off-balance, he’s a bit disjointed. He lost his footing, he’s surprised by the power even though the ball is coming right at him, he doesn’t need to make a vertical leap. On top of that, he completely puts the Portuguese player back in play. Yes, I think it’s a major handling error. If you want to go all the way and win big titles, you can’t have a goalkeeper… At the moment, Chevalier is still missing a bit of the sword to reign.”

Of course, Chevalier didn’t have a great match. There wasn’t a huge blunder, but we would have liked to see a save in a tough moment on the first goal, or at least something more reassuring to prevent the second. Even so, let’s not forget, he’s not the only one responsible for that goal.

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However, it’s as amusing as it is annoying to see this constant comparison with last season’s Donnarumma. Only the last few months are taken into account, when the Italian was in top form (especially in the Champions League). A year ago, and up until February after the first leg of the round of 16 against Liverpool, many were calling for his departure because he wasn’t solid enough in big matches. The replacement most people wanted? Chevalier.

Now, the latter has to succeed in adapting and take a step forward, that’s undeniable. But Donnarumma is not a miracle goalkeeper (and Manchester City’s season is far from serene). There’s also competition from Matvey Safonov (26), who could be a factor when he returns from injury. But it’s not impossible that Chevalier finishes the season strongly—his qualities haven’t suddenly disappeared.

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