As expected, PSG will defend their trophy in the Coupe de France final against their great rival, Lyon. The Lyonnaises got rid of Fleury (2-0) on Friday. For the Parisiennes, qualification was also expected as the gap between them and their opponent, Evian Thonon Grand Genève, modest 4th in Group B of Division 2 seemed insurmountable.
However, the teammates of Sakina Karchaoui, back from injury and named captain, had to be more patient than expected. Moreover, despite a large domination, the Parisiennes have never managed to break the Haute-Savoyard lock during the first 45 minutes.
Faced with a hedgehog defense, the PSG girls did not deceive the vigilance of Blandine Joly, the doorkeeper but also a penalty shooter as against OM in the previous round. Like Baltimore (20th, 24th) or Martens (33rd), the Parisiennes have often come up against Evian goalkeeper Thonon Grand Genève, supported by 150 supporters who came to Camp des Loges. The plan of Thierry Uvenard, the Haut-Savoyard coach, to trap PSG worked perfectly.
To return to Orléans, which they eliminated in the round of 16 (3-1), and which will be the venue for the final on Saturday May 13, the Parisiennes, deprived in particular of Ramona Bachmann (sick) or Grace Geyoro (housed) , had to force fate to avoid another penalty shootout. An exercise that had smiled on them in Bordeaux in the quarter-finals (0-0 then 5-4).
To reach its 8th Coupe de France final (3 wins and 4 losses), PSG relied on Kheira Hamraoui on the hour mark. The midfielder, who took the captain’s armband after the exit of Karchaoui at the break, tears away to recover a ball in the box and deceives Blandine Joly on a blocked shot. Gérard Prêcheur then rotated his squad in anticipation of the next four games in the space of a fortnight. Starting with that of next Wednesday at the Parc des Princes in the quarter-finals of the Champions League against the Germans of Wolfsburg. Without forcing, the Franciliennes easily contain the resident of D2, without trying to increase the score.
“We did not manage to raise our level of play, declares Gérard Prêcheur, the PSG coach at the microphone of BeIN Sports. We did not know how to take advantage of the opportunities we created. Against Lyon, it will be a prestigious poster for women’s football. Congratulations to Evian Thonon Grand Genève, Thierry Uvenard has put together a game plan to disrupt us. Internally, I have plenty of sources of discontent. This is not the desired scenario. On certain individual services, they put me in doubt. How can I line up certain players against Wolfsburg or Montpellier. I too am going to question myself and have time to reflect. This match allows us to see our limits. Yes, I am disappointed on this level and I am in difficulty. »
For her part, Elisa De Almeida, the PSG defender, notes that “we had trouble in the first half. It was our job to respect the opponent. We focus on the Champions League. We have the staff to rotate and have the playing time. We will be ready on Wednesday. »
Undefeated since August 9, 2020 and a last defeat in the Coupe de France against OL (0-0, 4-3 on penalties), PSG have a series of 10 games without losses. The Parisiennes will meet for the 5th time in the final an Olympique Lyonnais, who have almost always won (with 4 trophies against only one for the Parisiennes in 2018). One thing is certain, the final will be tighter than last year against Yzeure (D2), who had been pulverized 8-0 by PSG…