In the other matchup in the group, Newcastle fell to AC Milan, while Paris Saint-Germain barely made it into the Champions League round of 16 on Wednesday following a 1-1 draw at Borussia Dortmund.
PSG, who were in danger of missing out on their first group stage after the 2011 Qatari acquisition, overcame a goal deficit to secure the point that qualified them as the runners-up in Group F. Dortmund won the title, Milan came in third, trailing PSG in the head-to-head goal differential, while Newcastle took last place.
Shortly in the second half, Karim Adeyemi gave Dortmund the lead, but Warren Zaire-Emery, a youngster, tied the score as PSG advanced to the knockout stage for the twelfth consecutive season. Late on, Kylian Mbappe appeared to have the ball in the net, but VAR proved the France forward was just barely offside.
Despite the outcome, Luis Enrique’s team has a lot of work ahead of them if they want to advance much farther in the European arena given PSG’s weak performance against an unreliable Dortmund. Dortmund will escape several of the competition’s favorites by finishing first, particularly holders Manchester City and Real Madrid in the round of sixteen.
After both teams missed numerous tremendous chances in a furious first half, they amazingly failed to score. Dortmund knew that if they could avoid losing, they would lead the group, but Edin Terzic’s team swarmed forward, creating multiple opportunities but also giving PSG’s quick attackers room.
Before PSG erupted and put Dortmund on the ropes, Reus and Marius Wolf came close for the hosts early on. However, PSG was unable to deliver a decisive blow. After barely 25 minutes, Lee Kang-in missed a goal that was well in reach, and Mbappe came even closer in the next minute.
Before a sliding save, the 2018 World Cup winner circled Gregor Kobel and blasted goalward. The ball was cleared a few centimeters from the line by Niklas Suele. As PSG looked certain to lose, Mbappe turned the tables on them by dribbling down the left flank, shedding his marker, and squaring the ball to Zaire-Emery, who moved toward the goal before scoring.
With approximately ten minutes left, Mbappe appeared to have secured PSG’s spot in the knockout stage, but VAR disqualified the goal for offside. Though a win for the Magpies would have advanced them at PSG’s expense, Newcastle lost 2-1 to Milan at St. James’ Park, meaning a point was sufficient for the French champions.
