PSG in Ligue 1
The above viz shows the percentile rank of the team in comparison to other teams in Ligue 1. It can be observed that PSG are the top-ranked team in the division. They have outstanding numbers in all departments. The two areas where they are ranked lowest in the league are recoveries and crosses per 90, which are at 73.94 and 9.82, respectively.
Defence away from home
PSG’s defence has been strong this season, having conceded only 13 goals this season, of which they have let in only five on the road. The above viz shows the defensive territory of the team for their away games this season in Ligue 1. It indicates that PSG were involved in a lot of defensive actions in the defensive third. They have made 36.11 average interceptions, compared to 41.22 by their opponents. PSG wins 47.4% of the aerial duels and 58.2% of the defensive duels contested away from home per 90. Most of their defensive action comes in their defensive third and middle third. They have not given up any fouls in the box. They commit 10.11 fouls on average and concede 0.56 goals per 90 minutes away from home.
Defending at home
In terms of PSG’s defensive performances at home, the team tends to play with a higher backline as compared to playing away from home. While playing at home, PSG makes 30.31 interceptions per 90 minutes and have a success rate of 62.7% and 50.1% for defensive and aerial duels contested. The team makes 10.75 fouls per 90 minutes and lets in 1.0 goals on average while playing in their own fortress.
PSG’s loss
The above visuals are from PSG’s most recent away match, which ended in a 3-1 thrashing at the hands of Lens. The first map represents the shots taken against PSG. Lens managed to take the first shot within the first two minutes, which ended up being blocked by Donnarumma in goal. Lens took a total of nine shots in the game and ended up scoring three goals out of four shots on target. In the xG map for Lens for that match, it can be seen that Lens were easily able to break down the PSG midfield and managed to create an attacking threat. PSG made 33 interceptions in the game and won 40 out of 65 defensive duels, whereas Lens made 49 interceptions.
Cracks in defence
The above visuals represent the shots taken against PSG and the expected goals for Reims in the Ligue 1 fixture between Reims and Paris Saint-Germain. PSG started the game well and were able to maintain a good spell of possession, but soon lost the ball and saw three quickfire attempts on goal from Reims. In this match, Reims took the most number of shots against PSG in any away match, with a total of 22 shots attempted. Reims moved fairly easily through the PSG defence and exposed some flaws in the PSG backline. PSG’s inability to deal with fast movement and quick passing has already been exploited by big teams in Europe, and the match against Reims was an indicator of leakage in PSG’s defence. PSG made 51 interceptions in the match as compared to Reims’ 38. PSG won 41 defensive duels out of 68 against Reims.
Desperate measures
PSG had to defend plenty against Reims, especially given the amount of attacking threats that they ended up facing. The above viz represents the shots blocked by PSG against Reims away from home this season. PSG’s defence blocked a total of seven shots out of the 22 shots faced and had 0.3 blocked xG. Most of their blocks took place outside the box, along with two of them near the penalty area right in front of the goal. PSG made a total of 18 clearances in the match, whereas Reims made six.
