He undoubtedly expected to calmly lift his 35th title with PSG. As captain, he was to be the first to hold this Intercontinental Cup that the capital club had never won. Starting alongside his unstoppable friend Willian Pacho, Marquinhos had everything in hand to experience a great evening in Doha (Qatar) against Flamengo.
If the result is a success (2-1 success on penalties), this is really not the case for his match. Excited at the start of the match, the PSG match record holder (504 now) started it well, notably with a sliding tackle at the near post to take out a cross from Jorge Carrascal. Above all, he followed the rhythm of his team, which quietly took the upper hand over the Brazilians without rushing, with a goal from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (1-0, 38th).
Marquinhos’ second period was much less brilliant. At the hour mark, the Parisian captain was first guilty of an avoidable foul in the area. Overtaken by Giorgian de Arrascaeta’s hook, he hooked his supporting foot, forcing the referee to designate the penalty point after the intervention of the VAR. Jorginho finally punished the defender without trembling. And revived Flamengo (1-1, 62nd).
An inexplicable failure in stoppage time
If the sanction is logical, the fault is curious. Because Marquinhos has accustomed us to greater demands and precision in his interventions. However, this was very late and missed, enough to rekindle a debate on his physical state. Absent from the trip to Metz last Saturday due to “muscular fatigue in his right hip”, the Brazilian is not having the best period of his season.
His last releases have not been sparkling. Against Tottenham, during his 500th in the Parisian jersey, he had already forgotten Richarlison behind his back on the opening score. Against Monaco, his lack of promptness also gave the Monegasques the winning goal. And against Bilbao, he gave up his place at half-time to Ilia Zabarnyi, affected by this famous muscular fatigue.
Despite this blunder, the captain could have become the hero of his team at the end of the match. First perfectly placed to put an end to an express Flamengo counter-attack in the 85th minute, he had the winning goal in stoppage time. His recovery from a powerful cross from Ousmane Dembélé at ground level finally took the wrong direction, when all he had to do was push the ball deep three meters from the goal.
If this miss made him smile, this is not the case for the Parisian supporters, dejected in the stands of Doha. Visibly upset and pushed towards the offensive, Marquinhos spent the extra time offering himself offensively. His only real attempt, however, with a header in the 98th minute, was far too timid.
