Luis Enrique Wins First Spanish Managerial Duel Against Unai Emery

Luis Enrique emerged victorious in the first Spanish managerial duel against Unai Emery. PSG will defend a valuable double advantage in Birmingham, which could have been even more comfortable given their dominance over Aston Villa at the Parc des Princes. The recently crowned Ligue 1 champions took control of the ball from the outset. Dibu Martínez denied Dembélé a goal in the clearest chance of a French-dominated opening period.

The French side's generous and effective pressing, a well-oiled machine, managed to limit Villa's strategy to occasional long passes. However, the English team grew stronger in defence, frustrating PSG, who were camped on the edge of the opponent's area but lacked the inspiration to break through the wall.

It seemed inevitable that PSG would score when Aston Villa found what they had come to the Parc des Princes for. A McGinn interception and a subsequent extraordinary counterattack were perfectly completed by Rogers' goal, a real blow to the enthusiastic Parisian crowd. However, it did not unsettle PSG, who managed to level the match before halftime with a strike from the young talent Doué.

A strike before the break and another immediately after, with a magnificent individual dribble and shot by Kvaratskhelia, increased PSG's lead, which was logical given the play. A crucial save by Dibu Martínez and an offside call against Hakimi temporarily prevented the third local goal, which eventually came in stoppage time with Nuno Mendes as the scorer.