June 20 – Botafogo stunned European champions Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 to cause the first major upset of the Club World Cup.
In the 36th minute, striker Igor Jesus scored the winning goal with a deflection in a match that the French dominated. After the break, the Brazilians protected their lead with a double defensive wall and Luis Enrique’s team never found a reply, failing to play their way the Botafogo rearguard.
PSG had 75% of the possession and outshot the Brazilians 16-4, in front of a 54,000 crowd in the 90,000 capacity Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
Botafogo’s win will strengthen South America’s belief that they can go toe-to-toe with the European elite and be competitive in the Club World Cup. Today, Flamengo, 2019 and 2022 Copa Libertadores winners, take on Chelsea in Philadelphia.
“That’s why I say the graveyard in football is full of favorites. It was really about believing in ourselves. … We played a match that was almost perfect, technically speaking,” said Botafogo manager Renato Paiva.
“There were really no opportunities for PSG. We had a lot of team spirit, and I was saying backstage that we won this match making PSG taste their own poison, because we were what PSG has been for some time, which is a real team.”
Earlier this season, PSG won the treble, claiming their first Champions League title 20 days ago with a record-breaking 5-0 final victory against Inter Milan. In their opening game of the Club World Cup, the Parisians dismissed Atletico Madrid 4-0. With many of their players also having featured in the Nations League semi-finals and final the following week, they now looked very looked fatigued in the Californian heat.
Even so, they were still heavily favoured to defeat the South American champions.
“I think it’s normal. This competition is very intense and difficult,” said Enrique. “Every team is motivated, especially against our team. I think sometimes our team struggled against their defense. I think Botafogo is one of the toughest defensive teams in the tournament.”
With the victory, the 2024 Copa Libertadores winners throw group B wide open. The European pair of PSG and Atletico Madrid had been tipped to progress from the group, but with three points from two matches they trail Botafogo, on six points. The Spanish club inflicted a second consecutive defeat on Seattle Sounders, 3-1.
There was some relief for MLS teams as InterMiami managed a win against Portugal’s Porto.
Contact the writer of this story at samindra.kunti@insideworldfootball