Paris Saint-Germain equalled the longest unbeaten run in Europe’s top club competition (14 games) by any French club in history, thanks to a blistering first-half performance that helped the Parisiens run out 6-0 winners at Villarreal on matchday four of this season’s UEFA Champions League.
Any hopes of Villarreal getting a surprise result were utterly destroyed in a disastrous eight-minute period, as PSG roared into a four-goal lead at the Estadio de la Ceramica.
Firstly, Joao Neves headed in from a corner rebound on 9’, before a misplaced pass out from Peter Gulacsi just three minutes later allowed Maghnes Akliouche to play the ball back to Desire Doue, who rifled into the bottom-left corner.
Villarreal’s descent into farce continued barely 60 seconds later, when Renato Veiga failed to commit to a long pass from Gulacsi and allowed Achraf Hakimi to ghost in, sparking a succession of passes that ended with Neves’ blocked shot falling to Senny Mayulu, who volleyed it down and into the net.
PSG were in no mood for mercy, and Fabian Ruiz added a fourth soon after – another Villarreal giveaway saw Akliouche’s attempted finish at the near post blocked, only for him to square to an onrushing Ruiz, who buried a first-time drive low into the net.
Though it was not for want of trying, PSG were unable to add any further to their lead before half-time.
However, they wasted little time in the second half, adding to the scoreline just four minutes after the restart, when Ruiz doubled his money for the night, as he raced to meet Vitinha’s delectable ball over the line, deceived Veiga with a jink and finished calmly under Gulacsi for his second-ever brace in PSG colours.
Despite this now being little more than a training session for PSG, further punishment was forthcoming, with 17-year-old Parisian David Boly getting in on the act within minutes of coming on for his first Champions League appearance.
A layoff from the ever-influential Neves allowed him to burst into the box on the angle and smash a ferocious shot into the far corner off Veiga’s desperately outstretched leg.
Villarreal’s first match against the reigning European champions in nearly 20 years was ultimately one to forget, and it added to a dreadful recent record in the competition, which now reads: W1, D1, L12 across the last 14 games they’ve played in it.
As for PSG, the show goes on, and it’s now 10 straight wins across all competitions, with the last seven of them coming by a 2+ goal margin.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Joao Neves (Paris Saint-Germain)