Mika Godts scored his first Paris Saint-Germain goal as PSG beat Lyon 2-0 to go top of Ligue 1, despite injuries to Dembele, Kvaratskhelia and others
MIKA GODTS scored his first Paris Saint-Germain goal as the reigning European champions put aside a raft of injuries to key players to go top of Ligue 1 with a 2-0 win at home to Lyon on Monday.
Godts, the Belgian international signed from Ajax, came off the bench and set up Senny Mayulu for the 72nd-minute strike which broke the deadlock at the Parc des Princes.
He then sealed the win late on as PSG made it eight straight victories in all competitions and moved into first place in the table, one point ahead of Rennes.
“Mika is an ambitious player with a lot of quality, and he is only 21,” said PSG coach Luis Enrique.
“We have full confidence in him and we signed him because we want him to be here for many years.”
The game was initially due to be played on Sunday before being postponed by 24 hours following a request by Paris police who wanted to divert resources amid a wave of violent protests in the French capital.
That meant a clash with the Ballon d’Or ceremony happening at the same time in London, in which 10 PSG players were among the 30 nominees for the most prestigious individual award in football.
Among the nominees were last year’s laureate Ousmane Dembele and Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, perhaps the team’s standout performer during their run to a second straight Champions League title last season.
Dembele and Kvaratskhelia were both unavailable for this game anyway due to injuries picked up in last week’s 4-2 win over Barcelona, with the latter facing months on the sidelines after tearing his ACL.
“I would like to dedicate this win to ‘Kvara’,” said Luis Enrique. “We are very proud of him. We remain motivated as a team to keep winning but this victory is for him.”
A year ago Dembele picked up his Ballon d’Or award at a theatre in Paris while PSG were losing 1-0 in Marseille in a game postponed by 24 hours because of stormy weather.
Ominous
This time PSG — with Nuno Mendes and captain Marquinhos also injured — maintained their focus to claim a fifth successive Ligue 1 victory, although it took them some time before they translated their dominance into a goal.
Godts, who replaced Joao Neves just before the hour mark, fed Mayulu on the edge of the box and the 20-year-old scored his first of the season with a fierce drive into the bottom corner.
Lyon had come close twice in the first half, with Julien Duranville and Zachary Athekame forcing good saves from Matvey Safonov.
They could have gone top themselves with a win, but PSG made sure of the three points as Quentin Ndjantou released Godts in the 84th minute and he picked his spot beautifully.
“They deserve it because they deserve to play more often, but it is difficult in this team,” Luis Enrique added when asked about the impact of his substitutes.
PSG failed to win any of their first three games in Ligue 1 this season, so the fact they find themselves clear at the top already is ominous for the rest of French football.
“It is still just the start of the season,” Luis Enrique insisted.
“We have only played three Champions League games and don’t forget that last season we won our first three Champions League games and didn’t finish in the top eight.
“The season is very long but we have shown we are a very reliable and resilient team that always wants to win.
“Now is not the time to be at 100 percent, but we will try to find our rhythm going into the key part of the season, which will be around April.”