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Rediff.com  » Sports » Football Extras: PSG-Metz game stopped due to homophobic banner

Football Extras: PSG-Metz game stopped due to homophobic banner

August 31, 2019 10:07 IST
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Play was briefly halted by the referee midway through the first half of the Ligue 1 match between Metz and Paris St Germain due to a banner held up by the home supporters which was deemed to be homophobic.

IMAGE: Play was briefly halted by the referee midway through the first half of the Ligue 1 match between Metz and Paris St Germain due to a banner held up by the home supporters which was deemed to be homophobic. Photograph: Vincent Kessler/Reuters

Paris St Germain shrugged off the absence of their three main forwards to beat Metz 2-0 away on Friday as yet another French game this season witnessed a homophobic incident which led to play being temporarily stopped.

 

The champions were without Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani due to injury while world record signing Neymar has yet to feature for the club this season as he attempts to negotiate a move to Barcelona.

PSG took the lead in the 11th minute when Angel di Maria converted a penalty by sending the goalkeeper the wrong way, having spurned a spot kick in last week's 4-0 win over Toulouse.

Play was briefly halted by the referee midway through the first half for a few minutes due to a banner held up by the home supporters which was deemed to be homophobic.

It was the fourth such incident to occur in a French game this season after the French Football Federation pledged to crack down on homophobic chanting.

PSG's Cameroon forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting doubled the lead with a header shortly before halftime, his third goal in two league games this term after his brace against Toulouse.

Thomas Tuchel's side took few risks in the second half and comfortably recorded a third win in four Ligue 1 games, their first away from home after losing 2-1 at Rennes two weeks ago.

The victory put PSG provisionally top of Ligue 1 on nine points ahead of the rest of the weekend fixtures. Metz have four points from their four matches so far.

"The team put in a huge effort, it was not a brilliant performance but it was a serious one," Tuchel told reporters.

"It is obvious that we lacked quality in attack to create more opportunities but it was important that we won again, given the situation we were in (with so many absentees)."

Tuchel should be able to count on Cavani in two weeks' time, with Mbappe set to return from a muscle tear in three weeks.

Neymar, meanwhile, could yet stay at PSG after sporting director Leonardo said the club had not accepted Barca's offer for the Brazilian international, who left the Catalan side for Paris for 222 million euros ($247.40 million) two years ago.

"The first time we received a proposal from Barcelona for Neymar was on August 27. They have not yet given us an offer which has met our demands," Leonardo told reporters.

"PSG's position on Neymar has always been clear: if a satisfactory offer arrives then he could leave but that is not the case. The negotiations have not broken down but there's no agreement for now because our demands have not been met."

Denis Suarez leveller ends Sevilla's perfect start to season

A late strike from Denis Suarez salvaged a 1-1 draw for Celta Vigo at Sevilla on Friday, scuppering Julen Lopetegui's side's hopes of extending their 100 percent start to the La Liga season.

Sevilla had earned wins over Espanyol and Granada in their first two games under former Spain and Real Madrid coach Lopetegui and looked set for a third victory when Franco Vazquez nodded in a free kick from Ever Banega in the 81st minute.

But Suarez, a Celta youth product who returned to his boyhood club this summer after an underwhelming spell at Barcelona, ghosted into the area to meet a through ball from Santi Mina and calmly slotted home in the 84th.

The result means Atletico Madrid are the only team left in La Liga to have won all of their games this season, with Diego Simeone's side hosting Eibar on Sunday.

Athletic overpower Sociedad to win Basque derby

Athletic Bilbao continued their strong start to the season by beating Basque rivals Real Sociedad 2-0 in La Liga on Friday with a dominant performance.

Inaki Williams gave Athletic the lead in the 11th minute by sending a first-time shot crashing into the net to complete a quick move sparked by a throw in.

Raul Garcia extended their advantage in the 28th with a strike from outside the area which looped into the net.

Sociedad had a penalty awarded in between the two goals but it was overturned after a VAR review deemed that the foul had taken place outside the area, and things got worse when they lost influential midfielder Asier Illarramendi to injury.

Swedish teenager Alexander Isak did manage to put the ball in the net for the visitors after the interval but the effort was ruled offside after another VAR review.

Athletic continued to overpower their rivals as the minutes ticked by and they comfortably recorded another significant home win after beating Barcelona 1-0 on the opening day of the season, moving on to seven points after three games.

Sociedad have four points.

Werner treble sends Leipzig top of the table

RB Leipzig forward Timo Werner scored a hat-trick to give the visitors a 3-1 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Friday and provisionally put them top of the Bundesliga with three wins from three games.

Werner, who last week signed a contract extension with the Bulls, shook off Matthias Ginter and weaved the ball through the legs of keeper Yann Sommer for the opener in the 38th minute.

The 23-year-old Germany international, who has now scored five times in Leipzig's three league games so far, grabbed his second goal two minutes after the break.

Leipzig defender Willi Orban almost scored an own goal when he cleared a Gladbach cross onto the crossbar in the 59th before Breel Embolo did cut the deficit with a 90th minute header.

But Werner was not done yet and notched his treble with the final kick of the game to inflict a first home loss in Gladbach coach Marco Rose's 54th home game as a professional coach.

It is also Leipzig's best ever Bundesliga start.

"At times we played well and at times we allowed our opponents too much play," Werner told reporters. "It turned out to be a bit tight in the end until the third goal cleared everything up for us.

"We are very satisfied with three wins from three games," added the forward.

Leipzig, who have been drawn with holders Liverpool in their Champions League group, have nine points.

Borussia Dortmund, with six points after winning both of their matches so far, travel to Union Berlin on Saturday while champions Bayern Munich, on four points, entertain Mainz 05.

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Source: REUTERS
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