Paris Saint-Germain dominate Chelsea in Champions League first leg

PARIS: Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain secured a commanding advantage in their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie with a thrilling 5-2 victory over Chelsea in the first leg here at Parc des Princes on Wednesday.

Substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia inspired the hosts with two late goals, helping Luis Enrique’s side pull away after a fiercely contested encounter.

PSG twice took the lead in the first half. Bradley Barcola opened the scoring in the 10th minute, controlling a header from Joao Neves before firing a powerful half-volley under the crossbar.

Chelsea responded in the 28th minute when Enzo Fernandez delivered a cross that found Malo Gusto, who drove the ball past goalkeeper Matvei Safonov.

PSG restored their advantage five minutes before the break as Ousmane Dembele weaved past defenders Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana before finishing calmly.

Chelsea again equalised shortly after the restart when Pedro Neto dispossessed Desire Doue and set up Fernandez to score.

The introduction of Kvaratskhelia proved decisive. In the 74th minute, Barcola intercepted a poor pass from goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen and found the Georgian forward, who set up Vitinha for a delicate lob.

Kvaratskhelia then curled in a superb strike four minutes from time before adding a stoppage-time tap-in from Achraf Hakimi’s pass to seal the emphatic win.

Reflecting on their triumph, Kvaratskhelia expressed satisfaction as he helped his team to an important win.

"I'm happy that I can help, happy that we won against Chelsea because they are a good team," Kvaratskhelia said.

"We are still PSG. We showed everybody that we are capable of everything."

Despite showing defensive vulnerabilities, PSG’s attacking quality ensured they head to the second leg at Stamford Bridge next Tuesday with a strong advantage.