AS Roma 1-1 (3-5 on pens) Paris Saint-Germain
Football games that head to penalties don’t happen that often, so the 36,000-strong crowd at the Detroit Catholic Central High School was spoiled lots when Roma and PSG went the distance and decided the game on a shootout.
Football betting fans that followed this game know how much of an entertaining and controversial match this turned out to be. This game had enough action and drama that left the mostly American crowd at the edge of their seats.
Both sides started the match even, unable to punch through the opposing defences to score. PSG eventually pulled ahead in the 36th minute, when a corner turned into a scramble that saw Marquinhos power the ball through Alisson.
PSG held on to the lead until the second half, where controversial calls were made. New PSG man Dani Alves made a terrible tackle on Diego Perotti just inside the penalty box, but Chris Penso did not call for a penalty.
Roma was able to even the playing field when Gerson made a beautiful lob over the backline to Sadiq Umar. The Nigeria attacker then skillfully shot the ball past Alphonse Areola’s legs for the equaliser.
The Serie A runners up kept up the pressure. Daniele De Rossi powered a brilliant free kick to the top-right corner that was stopped by a beautiful Areola parry. Sadiq Umar also made a fantastic run from the right wing, blitzing through the PSG defence. It took an illegal tackle from Presnel Kimpembe to stop Umar’s attack. Many expected a penalty, but Penso kept his hands still and did not award Roma their second penalty.
The frustrating turn of events definitely killed off Roma’s momentum as PSG gained more confidence. PSG had more shot attempts in the game’s dying minutes and were on red-hot form until the penalty shootout.
Both Alisson and Areola made great efforts at goal, making the right guesses but failing to reach the ball on time. It was Areola’s top stoppage of Gerson that won the game for them. Marquinhos killed the game with his penalty, ending the shootout 3-5.
This is a curious match that people will be talking about, but fans of both sides will be excited to see what’s up ahead for their squad. Both clubs showed us fantastic football worthy of the prestigious preseason tilt.
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