Barcelona 1-2 PSG: first defeat of 25/26 for Hansi Flick's team

FC Barcelona suffered their first defeat of 2025/26 at home in Montjuïc against Paris Saint-Germain (1-2). In a great match between the two best clubs in Europe at the moment, despite the injuries in both squads, both teams displayed the vertical football that characterizes them.

Barça ended up losing possession against a PSG that did damage with high pressure and speed on the wings. The dominance was divided into stretches of the match, with many clear chances in both areas. In the end, the balance tilted in favor of PSG with a goal from Gonçalo Ramos in the 90th minute.

Luis Enrique's team assimilated the changes better and in the wear and tear in the second half, in addition to being favored by the criteria with the warnings from the main Michael Oliver. The Gauls committed 14 fouls, 2 less than the 'culés', but only received a couple of yellow cards. Barça, on the other hand, ended up with 4 cautioned.

Level at halftime: Barça struck first, but Paris reacted quickly

Hansi Flick made five changes compared to his lineup against Real Sociedad on Sunday. Eric García and Pau Cubarsí returned to the center of defense, while Dani Olmo, Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres joined the attack. 

For PSG, Luis Enrique wanted to recover his starting trident in midfield (Vitinha, Fabián Ruiz and Joao Neves), but the latter was injured in the warm-up. Zaïre-Emery had to replace the Portuguese at the last minute and the French had difficulties getting out with controlled ball.

Lamine started on fire, with a magical roulette to leave three rivals scattered and a perfect assist with the outside of his right foot that left Ferran Torres one-on-one against Chevalier in the 13th minute. The '7' left the goalkeeper stranded, but Zabarnyi saved the shot on an empty goal from the 'azulgrana' striker under the posts.

Ferran Torres scoring the first goal for Barça against PSG

The 'Shark', however, would have revenge six minutes later. A mistake in Vitinha's exit allowed Yamal to recover and pass to Pedri, who saw Marcus Rashford free on the left. The Englishman, brilliantly, passed first time towards the right side, where Ferran appeared enabled to finish at will.

After the 1-0, PSG settled on the field. The high pressure from the visitors began to destabilize the 'culé' defense and, in the 38th minute, a remarkable projection from Nuno Mendes ended in the assist from the Portuguese for Senny Mayulu. Pau Cubarsí failed in the narrowing and the 19-year-old attacker went alone to shoot Szczesny.

The Pole almost conceded another goal in the 41st minute, but Bradley Barcola, after beating Gerard Martín in the one-on-one, shot high, bothered by the left-back. Barça had a bad time in the final stretch of the first half and only came close to the rival goal again with another good overflow from Rashford that ended in a shot from Ferran deflected to the corner.

Michael Oliver spared Nuno Mendes a red card in the second half

Lamine Yamal and Nuno Mendes during the Barça-PSG

After the break, Barcelona and Paris kept their lineups intact. Luis Enrique's team started the second half better, keeping Lamine and Rashford at bay on the flanks, while Mayulu and Barcola created danger on the sides of the 'azulgrana' area.

After a quarter of an hour of slight Parisian dominance, Barça reacted with a quick exit in which Lamine was left one-on-one against Nuno Mendes. The Portuguese, already cautioned for another foul on the '10', knocked him down on the edge of the area. The foul was clear and deserving of the second yellow, but the main Michael Oliver spared the full-back.

Later, in the 63rd minute, Hakimi saved a shot from Olmo point-blank under the posts. Ferran threw a pass back that Zabarnyi cleared with difficulty, but the Terrassa native shot into the middle of the goal. Lamine also wanted to take advantage of the second rebound, already with Chevalier on top to force the corner kick.

Luis Enrique, seeing that Barcelona was coming at him, put Lucas Hernández in for Mbaye to reinforce the defense. Flick did the same, refreshing the left side with the entry of Alejandro Balde for Gerard Martín. In addition, Marc Casadó replaced Olmo and Lewandowski did the same with Rashford, leaving Ferran on the left.

Gonçalo Ramos finished off Barça in the 90th minute

Barça, however, felt the physical wear and tear as the minutes passed. Pedri, overwhelmed by an asphyxiating mark from Vitinha, came off in the 78th minute for Marc Bernal. PSG also refreshed their offensive trident with Lee Kang-in and Ndjantou entering for Mayulu and Barcola, respectively.

The Korean was very close to putting his team ahead in the 83rd minute, after a good arrival on the right that allowed him to shoot across, straight to the base of the post. Paris arrived more physically whole to the final stretch and, in the 90th minute, Hakimi caught the 'culé' defense off guard, filtering a millimeter pass for Gonçalo Ramos.

The Portuguese entered free through the center of the area, anticipating the 'culé' center-backs to finish with one touch against Szczesny. First defeat of Flick's Barça in 25/26 and second at home in the Champions League against PSG. In the one-on-one between 'heavyweights', the Parisian physical hierarchy and Michael Oliver's decision not to send off Nuno Mendes prevailed.

On Matchday 3, Barcelona will host Olympiacos, while Paris will travel to Leverkusen. With the defeat, the 'azulgrana' team remains in the 'play-off' zone, but drops to 16th place. 'Lucho's' team, on the other hand, climbs to third place, behind Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

Match details: FC Barcelona 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain

• FC Barcelona, 1: Szczesny; Koundé, Eric Garcia (Christensen, min. 85), Cubarsí, Gerard Martín (Balde, min. 72); Frenkie de Jong, Pedri (Bernal, min. 78); Lamine Yamal, Olmo (Casadó, min. 72), Rashford (Lewandowski, min. 72); Ferran Torres.
• Paris Saint-Germain, 2: Chevalier; Hakimi, Pacho, Zabarnyi, Nuno Mendes; Vitinha, Fabián Ruiz (Gonçalo Ramos, min. 72), Zaïre-Emery; Mbaye (Lucas, min. 65), Mayulu (Lee Kang-in, min. 80) and Barcola (Ndjantou, min. 80).
• Goals. 1-0, Ferran Torres (min. 19); 1-1, Senny Mayulu (min. 38); 1-2, Gonçalo Ramos (min. 90).
• Referee: Michael Oliver (England). Cautioned Frenkie de Jong, Dani Olmo, Marc Casadó and Lamine Yamal for Barça. For PSG, he cautioned Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi. In the 27th minute, he ruled out a foul inside the area by Zabarnyi on Eric García. The VAR supported the main decision. He spared Nuno Mendes a second yellow card for a clear foul on Lamine Yamal on the edge of the area.
• Stadium: Olímpico Lluís Companys de Montjuïc, in Barcelona.
• Incidents: match corresponding to Matchday 2 of the league phase of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26.