Paris Saint-Germain thrash Monaco to win French Super Cup
What's the story
Paris Saint-Germain got the 2018-19 season to a perfect start as they thrashed Monaco 4-0 to win the French Super Cup. Brazilian superstar Neymar featured for the French champions as a substitute and came on in the 75th minute. The win marked the first piece of silverware for manager Thomas Tuchel, who took over PSG this season. Here are the details.
Twitter Post
8th French Super Cup win for PSG
FULL TIME: PSG put on a dominating performance to win their eighth Trophée des Champions! #TDC2018 #PSGASM 4-0 🔴🔵 #ICICESTPARIS pic.twitter.com/4lnYWeol7j
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) August 4, 2018
Neymar
Neymar makes first PSG appearance since World Cup
Neymar made his first appearance for the French giants since he suffered a broken foot back in February, 2018. This was also his first game post the FIFA World Cup 2018. Neymar was under a lot of scrutiny in Russia for play-acting and going down the ground several times. He endured a disappointing campaign as Brazil were knocked out in the quarter-finals.
Smart decision
Tuchel smart to hand Neymar few minutes
Tuchel was wise enough not to start Neymar, who genuinely lacks match fitness after the break post the World Cup. Neymar got some valuable minutes on the pitch and will hope to gain his feet in the coming days. The victory will give him lots of confidence. PSG start their Ligue 1 campaign on August 12 when they take on Caen at home.
Goals
Di Maria brace lights up stadium in Shenzhen
Former Real Madrid star Angel Di Maria scored a brace to light up the stadium in Shenzhen, China. A crowd of 41,237 had come to witness the tie. He broke the deadlock in the 32nd minute with a free-kick. Christopher Nkunku added the second goal before halftime. Timothy Weah then got on to the score-sheet, before Di Maria netted in injury-time.