The French football team PSG, the champion of Europe, won the Intercontinental Cup last night, on penalties, against the Brazilian team Flamengo.
The Russian goalkeeper, who helped win the trophy with four penalty saves, now aims to replace his French colleague, the only one who did not hug him after the feat, alongside the Ukrainian Zabarnîi.
There is no peace in PSG’s goal. The victory in the Intercontinental Cup sparked a new conflict between the factions. After saving four penalties against Flamengo, Russian Matvey Safonov has a right to claim a starting spot. The one to pay the price will be Frenchman Lucas Chevalier, who looked untouchable after being appointed to replace Donnarumma, who was sold to City. The former player from Lille, however, risks being taken out of the game.
When Safonov saved Araujo’s final penalty, all his teammates ran to hug him. All but Chevalier. And besides Zabarnîi, who, being Ukrainian, had other reasons not to do it. The Frenchman, however, seemed annoyed by the exploits of his colleague.
The international press searched and found that, in 1986, the Romanian Helmut Duckadam (Steaua Bucharest) saved four Barcelona penalties in the European Cup final, held in Seville, and entered the Book of Records. In short, Safonov became the true hero of the Doha final. An unexpected hero because, on the eve of the match, no one had predicted that he would play.
Chevalier was expected to start after missing three games, allegedly due to an injury sustained in Monte Carlo at the end of November. Later, Safonov played against Rennes (5-0), Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League (0-0) and Metz (2-3).
Against Flamengo, Chevalier’s return to the starting line-up looked predictable. But Spanish coach Luis Enrique decided otherwise, winning the bet. Thus, it triggered a new conflict between the goalkeepers, which has become almost a tradition in Paris, ever since Sirigu arrived in the capital in 2011 to replace Douchez. The real battle began when the Sardinian was challenged by Trapp’s arrival in 2015. The German, now at Paris FC, was in turn ousted by Areola, a homegrown player, who then had to share the role with Buffon in 2018. It then looked like a truce was possible with Navas, acquired from Real Madrid in 2019. But in 2021, the Costa Rican was ousted by Donnarumma, who arrived in Paris as the European champion and the best player of the tournament. The Italian had to earn his starting place. A year ago, the French press attacked Donnarumma, preparing for Chevalier’s arrival.
Luis Enrique preferred Chevalier, also considered Maignan’s heir in the national team. But after an encouraging debut, with two penalties saved against Tottenham in the European Super Cup, the Frenchman began to make mistakes. The initial, inevitable criticism affected the Frenchman’s composure and that of his defence.
Safonov has restored some balance, and in Doha he showed that he is no less capable than his teammate. On Saturday, PSG return to the pitch for the round of 16 of the French Cup with amateur team Fontenay-le-Compte. The starting position in goal is already a stake.
