PSG prevail on penalties over Aspire Dreams

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) made it to the semi-finals of Al Kass 2018,winning a penalty shootout against Aspire Football Dreams in a game thatthe French youngsters could easily have lost.Both sides had been quietly impressive in the group games, progressingto the knockout stage with a minimum of fuss. Stylistically, PSG and AFDare strikingly similar, combining solid organisation with technicalprowess and high fitness levels.AFD had the better of the opening exchanges, and Isaac Nuhu went closeto opening the scoring on four minutes with a good effort from theleft-hand corner of the area that curled just wide of the far post. But,with the game 10 minutes old, PSG produced a moment of brilliance thatalmost broke the deadlock. Tanguy Coulibaly chipped a diagonal ball fromthe left into the path of Massinissa Oufella, advancing towards thepenalty area, and the Paris captain smashed a rising drive against thecrossbar.Despite pre-match predictions of a cagey encounter, it was soon clearthat the fourth of the quarter-finals was developing into an open match,and it was soon AFD’s turn to fashion a goalscoring chance, whenChristian Otabil intercepted a sloppy back pass and went one-on-one withTrey Vimalin, but the keeper was equal to his first-time effort.Nuhu put a free kick just wide from 25 yards out, as Aspire began totake control of proceedings, although PSG generally managed to restricttheir opponents to shots from distance, with the AFD number 11 onceagain going close from the edge of the box on the half hour.Five minutes later, PSG coach made a bold tactical move, with alike-for-like triple substitution. Perhaps the changes – highly unusualat such an early stage of the game — represented a tacit admission thatPSG were struggling to match AFD’s energetic approach. Whatever therationale, the gambit did little to alter the balance of play, withAspire retaining control of the game for the remainder of the firsthalf. A fourth PSG substitution – this one enforced – was made shortlybefore the interval, with the injured Oufella making way for AnfaneM’Ze. The injury was a blow for the Parisians, as their skipper – alongwith Coulibaly – had been among the side’s most influential performers.As the second-half got underway, it seemed clear that Aspire coachSerine Dia had instructed his players to get into the opponent’s penaltyarea and resist the temptation to shoot from distance. The tactic almost paid off on 52 minutes when the impressive Nuhu lofteda ball into the area from deep on the left, which Sibiry Keita noddedover the onrushing Vimalin, only to see his effort bounce wide of theleft post.Aspire made a double change on the hour, with midfielder Djakaria Barroreplacing defender Shafic Ssebyala, and Otabil withdrawn forfellow-striker Umar Lutalo, as coach Dia attempted to reinforce hisattacking options. AFD continued to dominate, but could not convert thisdominance into goals, wasting chance after chance as the game driftedtowards a seemingly inevitable penalty shotout.But then, out of nowhere, referee Ali Al Haddad awarded a spot kick toAspire, having spotted a handball from Adil Aouchiche as he jumped todefend a corner. Lutalo stepped up and put his shot low to Vimalin’sleft but the keeper, at full stretch, produced a wonderful save tosomehow keep the ball out and his side in the game.The incident provided a spark which belatedly brought the match to life,as PSG began to mount attacks with a renewed sense of urgency. However,neither side could change the stalemate, and it was little surprisethat the game finished goalless.A tense shootout ended with PSG running out winners by 4-2, withAlexandre Fressange the hero of the hour as he converted the winningpenalty. The young Parisians will meet Esperance Tunis — a side that isyet to concede during Al Kass 2018 — in tomorrow’s second semi-final.