Philip Morrissey
Wed, Aug 13 2025
PSG 2 - 2 Tottenham Hotspur (PSG win 4-3 on penalties)
A shootout penalty from Nuno Mendes proved to be the difference in tonight’s UEFA Super Cup Final at the Stadio Friuli in Udine.
Goals in the last ten minutes from subs Lee kang-In and Goncalo Ramos dragged PSG back level in ordinary time before the penalty drama. They will count themselves lucky given their poor display but will point to their never say die attitude at the end as the Parisians won their first ever Super Cup.
It was a heart-breaking loss for the London side however. They looked to have had the game sewn up thanks to goals from defenders Micky Van de Ven and Christian Romero until the late showing from PSG.
Luis Enrique was able to name eight of the starting lineup that thrashed Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Munich back in May. All the pre-match news circulated around the future of goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. He was left out as contract talks have stalled with PSG.
Thomas Frank named Mohammed Kudus and Joao Palhiniha for their competitive debuts for his new club. The goalscorer from the Europa League final, Brennan Johnson, was named on the bench while Yves Bissouma was left out after disciplinary issues.
It was somewhat of a cautious beginning from both sides as they tried to feel out one another. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had the first opportunity on nine minutes after neat interplay between himself, Bradley Barcola and Achraf Hakimi. The final effort was lacking in direction and power though.
It was noticeable that Tottenham focused their attention on playing more long balls and being aggressive in midfield. Mohammed Kudus was linking up well with Richarlison in the PSG half and the attacking players from Paris were finding it hard to get time on the ball.
Their first real chance came from these two linking up. Kudus won the ball in midfield and fed the ball into the path of the Brazilian. He had spotted Lucas Chevalier a long way off his line. His effort took a deflection, but the keeper was just able to tip it over the bar.
Ousmane Dembele had been quiet but almost found a way around the Spurs backline. He picked the ball up in a pocket of space before laying the ball into the path of Barcola. His low cross was blocked.
Marquinhos was guilty of a slip to allow a shot for Kudus. He recovered in time to make a critical block. It would not be long before the London club got themselves in front though. PSG were found wanting at the back as a set piece was not properly cleared.
Palhiniha saw his shot come off the bar and Micky Van de Ven reacted quickest to tap it home.
Kudus had a shot come back off the post as PSG dithered again before the whistle went for offside just before the half time whistle. Enrique fumed as his side came off behind at the break.
His mood got worse shortly after the resumption. A soft free kick was conceded out wide which was taken by Pedro Porro. He found Christian Romero unmarked at the back post. His header was on target but went through the grasp of Chevalier.
Enrique rang the changes in order to get back into the game, but they lacked any kind of flow or cohesion. At the back, they continued to look nervous, and the pairing of Romero and Van de Ven stood in front of everything they threw at them.
The introduction of Fabian Ruiz brought more control and focus into the PSG midfield whilst the strikers of Goncalo Ramos and Lee Kang-In gave them more of a focus than before. The latter gave the French side a lifeline with five minutes to go when he lashed home an effort from the edge of the area that flew past Guglielmo Vicario.
Spurs were living on the edge at this point. A fierce drive from Nuno Mendes was goalwards but deflected wide by Dominic Solanke. Then Ibrahim Mbaye went down in the box looking for a penalty. He was booked instead.
The energy levels were waning as the game entered injury time. A number of players went down with cramp. PSG sensed blood and struck the crucial blow. Dembele evaded his marker to put in a low cross that was converted by the head of Ramos.
We went straight into penalties. Vitinha missed his spotkick to give Spurs a 2-0 advantage but that was short lived. The exhausted Van de Ven was unlucky with his effort before Mathys Tel put his wide of the post. It was left to Mendes to seal the win with a coolly converted effort.
The sense of relief and joy amongst the PSG side was a clear contrast to the Spurs players on the ground. Both sides open up their domestic season this weekend. Tottenham must recover from this when they take on Burnley at home on Saturday at 15:00. PSG start the defence of their League 1 title when they face Nantes at home on Sunday.
Paris Saint Germain: Lucas Chevalier; Achraf Hakimi Mouh, Marquinhos, Willian Pacho Tenorio, Nuno Mendes; Désiré Doué (Goncalo Ramos 76), Vitinha, Warren Zaïre-Emery (Kang-in Lee 67); Bradley Barcola (Ibrahim Mbaye 67), Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Fabian Ruiz Pena 60).
Subs not used: Matvei Safonov, Lucas Hernandez, Renato Bellucci Marin, Lucas Lopes Beraldo, Noham Kamara.
Booked: Bradley Barcola (55), Willian Pacho Tenorio (56), Ibrahim Mbaye (89).
Tottenham: Guglielmo Vicario; Cristian Romero, Kevin Danso, Micky van de Ven; Pedro Porro Sauceda, João Palhinha (Archie Gray 71), Rodrigo Bentancur Colmán, Pape Sarr, Diop Djed-Hotep Spence; Mohammed Kudus (Mathys Tel 79), Richarlison (Dominic Solanke-Mitchell 71).
Subs not used: Brandon Austin, Benjamin Davies, Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert, Luka Vušković, Jun'ai Byfield, Antonín Kinský, Lucas Bergvall.
Booked: Richarlison (53).
Referee: Joao Pinheiro.
Attendance: 21,025
extratime.com Player of the Match: Fabian Ruiz (PSG)
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— extratime.com (@extratime.com) 12 August 2025 at 23:03