A feisty and entertaining clash, which saw two City men sent off in 12 second-half minutes, required Brian Barry-Murphy‘s side to dig deep at the Stade Georges-Lefèvre to come away with a precious result.
Shea Charles‘ curling strike on the half-hour mark had given the visitors the lead but Xavi Simons’ second-half penalty cancelled out the opener with Finley Burns sent off for the challenge.
Charles was then shown a second yellow card with 12 minutes remaining and the away side battled in a backs-to-the-wall performance to maintain our place atop Group A on goal difference.
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What happened
A tentative opening bore few clear-cut chances - Micah Hamilton and Pascal Noha Lemina smashing over at either end early on.
City then saw a penalty appeal waved away when CJ Egan-Riley went to ground under pressure from El-Chadaille Bitshiabu, before Tai Sodje called Denis Franchi into action, turning smartly but firing a low effort straight at the Paris ‘keeper.
The home side then carved the game’s best effort on 26 minutes with a neat passage of play, as Simons flicked into the path of Daouda Weidmann, who fashioned an opening but saw his drilled effort clip the foot of the post.
It served as a warning for City and four minutes later, the away side broke the deadlock.
Hamilton and Samuel Edozie combined well down the left-flank before the latter cut back for Charles, who took a touch on the edge of the area to compose himself before curling well into the bottom corner.
Edozie almost doubled the advantage before the break but was thwarted by Franchi from a narrow angle and despite late Paris pressure, City headed into the break with the lead.
Hamilton should have made it two six minutes after the restart, skewing an effort wide of the target, while Cieran Slicker denied the lively Simons twice in quick succession.
The pendulum swung in the home side’s favour on 66 minutes, as Paris were awarded a penalty when Burns nudged Djeidi Gassama in the area - the City man sent off for the foul. Simons stepped up to convert.
Charles was then given his marching orders 12 minutes later - shown a second yellow card for a rash challenge on the PSG goalscorer.
Though Paris sought to capitalise on the two-man advantage, City managed the game well to limit the home side’s opportunities, surviving a flurry of late pressure in five minutes of injury time to secure a vital point.
How we lined up
City employed a 4-3-3 formation, making four changes from the side that drew 2-2 with Arsenal at the weekend with James McAtee and Josh Wilson-Esbrand, who made their first-team debuts in the Carabao Cup win over Wycombe, recalled to Pep Guardiola’s squad for tonight’s Champions League encounter.
Slicker was shielded by a backline of Rico Lewis, captain Luke Mbete (C), Burns and Egan-Riley.
Charles, Romeo Lavia and Hamilton occupied midfield, behind the attacking trident of Edozie, Sodje and Oscar Bobb.
CITY XI | Slicker, Lewis, Mbete (C), Burns, Egan-Riley, Charles, Lavia, Hamilton, Edozie, Bobb (Oduroh 79’), Sodje (O’Reilly 75’).
SUBS | Van Sas, Katongo, Tarensi, Mebude, Taylor.
PSG XI | Franchi, Bodiang (C), Bitshiabu, El Hannach, Bitumazala (Najeh 88’), Zaire Emery, Weidmann (Tchicamboud 83’), Gassama, Michut, Lemina, Simons.
SUBS | Lavellee, Delest, Manisa, Bikouta, Mukelenge.
What it means
With one win and a draw from two games, City are top of Group A - level on points with Club Brugge, who triumphed 4-1 at RB Leipzig earlier in the day, but boasting a superior goal difference.
Yet to register a point, Leipzig sit bottom of the table - two points behind PSG.
What’s next
Our next UEFA Youth League game will see City travel to Club Brugge on Tuesday 19 October (12:30 UK time) for Matchday Three.
Meanwhile, our Elite Development Squad are back in Premier League 2 action on Saturday 2 October, welcoming Derby County to the Academy Stadium in a 16:00 kick-off.
Tickets are available for the encounter, priced at £3 for adults and £1 for Over-65s and Under-21s. Men’s 2021/22 Season Ticket holders can claim one free ticket.
Full ticket information can be found here.
As always, you can find comprehensive coverage of our EDS and Academy games on mancity.com, our official app and our Twitter account: @ManCityAcademy.
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