This time, Club Brugge was no match for it. Unlike the first leg, the Blauw in Zwart were swept away by Paris Saint Germain for the C1 closing match. What closes a European campaign not so glorious as that.
This Wednesday morning, the French press was not kind to the last Pro League champion. Starting with the newspaper L’Equipe. “While the only team on the pitch to play anything yet, Club Brugge has long displayed an astonishing lack of aggressiveness “, estimated the daily. Clearly, the defensive performance is singled out: “As a result, his defense suffered for a long time with a helpless Hendry and a Ricca who had a lot of waste in his game. Mignolet is at fault on the opening goal but without him the damage could have been much more important.”
Clément’s choices also caused a lot of talk. In particular the surprise tenure of young Sandra who receives a severe 3/10. “He had a loss of ball and a bad choice, missing the opportunity to get his team back into the game by forgetting about Lang.” The Neymar of the Venice of the North is also the only one, with Mignolet, to have a positive note. “The Dutchman was the most creative and dangerous Brugge player, finding good passing angles for De Ketelaere.”
For the Parisian, PSG was simply too strong for this Bruges. “Inspired and brilliant, especially in the first period, the capital club, already qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League, spanked the Belgians with a double from Kylian Mbappé and another from Leo Messi”, started the newspaper of the French capital. “Certainly, Bruges did not defend like Nice (0-0) nor put the intensity and impact of Lens (1-1) but it is a small team with its charm and some good players, not bogus for a penny “, says the daily.
Le Figaro did not recognize the Belgian champions of the first two games. “But where did Club Brugge go, which had led the hard life at Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg (1-1)?”, he begins. “If the PSG had nothing more to hope or to fear before this match, the champions of Belgium, them, had a lot to gain. (…) But Bruges did not put all the chances on its side … It It wasn’t until half-time to see the visitors really getting into their hosts’ bacon.In the end, Stanley Nsoki and his teammates left the Parc des Princes with a new suitcase, they who conceded at least four goals during their last four outings in C1. It’s a record in the history of the competition. “
Same story with RMC Sport. “This time there was no Club Brugge”, says the media on its website. “In September, Club Brugge, at home for the opening of the European campaign, impressed by dominating a very rough PSG throughout the meeting. But this time, the Belgian formation, swept 5-0 by Leipzig during the previous day, hardly existed in the first period. The Parisians, with what is perhaps their best trio in the midfield (Gueye-Verratti-Wijnaldum), were in control and were able to accumulate the assaults on Simon Mignolet’s cage. “
After the meeting, Clément admitted to being proud of his club: “This Champions League campaign will be a good experience for my young players.” Still, after a 4/6 that had ignited Belgium, the return to earth remains brutal. And the European coefficient of Belgian clubs is always more worrying. With, as a backdrop, the ever more pressing danger of the loss of the club qualified directly for the queen of European competition.
