Liverpool crashed out of the Champions League after losing 4-1 on penalties to PSG following a 1-1 aggregate draw in their last-16 tie on Tuesday night.
After winning last week’s first leg 1-0, Liverpool started brightly but were pegged back in the 12th minute when Ousmane Dembele finished off a swift break to bring PSG level in the tie.
There were no further goals in normal time or extra time and penalties were needed to separate the two sides.
Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones had their penalties saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma, and it was left to Desire Doue to smash home the winning spot-kick for the visitors.
But who stood out on a dramatic night at Anfield?
Mail Sport’s LEWIS STEELE was on hand to rate the players from both teams…
It was heartbreak for Liverpool as they were knocked out of the Champions League on penalties
Desire Doue scored the winning penalty after Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones missed
LIVERPOOL
Alisson 7.5 – Last week was the best performance of his life to use his words. This week was another fine display, making two huge stops to deny Dembele and Barcola making it 2-0 in the first half.
Alisson was excellent again, but could not save any penalties in the shootout
Trent Alexander-Arnold 7 – Nearly made a tie-defining mistake when he was caught overplaying in the middle. That was the only mistake as he kept Kvaratskhelia quiet and dictated play from midfield.
Ibrahima Konate 7 – Will be gutted to not do better with Dembele’s goal but in reality there was not much he could have done to avoid it. Played well other than that.
Virgil van Dijk 7 – Captain fantastic often goes unrecognisable in these games because he is always in the right place at the right time and looks like he never breaks a sweat.
Virgil van Dijk looked like he never broke sweat but it wasn’t enough for his team to get through
Andy Robertson 6 – Could he have done better to deal with Barcola for PSG’s early goal? Some fans thought so. Got up and down the left flank well.
Ryan Gravenberch 6.5 – A huge block to deny Kvaratskhelia late in the first half and screened the defence well.
Alexis Mac Allister 6.5 – Poor to lose the ball and concede a huge chance in the first half but was always willing to contribute in the build-up and never stopped running.
Mohamed Salah 7 – Felt like he was let down by attacking colleagues Jota and Diaz at times. Salah was creator in chief but end product from team-mates was lacking. The Egyptian saw two huge chances go begging in the first half.
Mohamed Salah missed two early chance that proved costly in the end
Dominik Szoboszlai 6 – Starts the press and was like a rash over PSG in the early stages when they could not get out. Did not impact the game how he would have liked on the ball.
Luis Diaz 6 – A willing runner who caused problems for the French side all night but was lacking the cutting edge.
Diogo Jota 6 – A big call to start Jota over Nunez and though he contributed a lot off the ball, this was not Jota’s night in possession.
Substitutes
Darwin Nunez (for Jota 73min) – 6
Jarell Quansah (for Alexander-Arnold, 73min) – 6
Curtis Jones (for Mac Allister, 90min) – 6
Cody Gakpo (for Diaz, 101min) – 6
Harvey Elliott (for Szoboszlai, 106min) – NA
Wataru Endo (for Konate, 111min) – NA
Subs not used: Jaros, Kelleher, Chiesa, Tsimikas, McConnell.
Manager
Arne Slot 7 – Gameplan was fine and Liverpool came out firing. Would have wanted better finishing from his attackers.
PSG
Gianluigi Donnarumma 9 (MOTM) – Mocked last week for his poppadom wrist in the Parc des Princes for Liverpool’s late winner but the Italian put in an assured performance here and was commanding on crosses. Saved Nunez and Jones’s penalties in style. Man of the match.
Gianluigi Donnarumma saved two penalties to redeem himself after struggling last week
Achraf Hakimi 6 – Seemed the weakest of the PSG back four in terms of the build-up play but threatened when he had licence to dart forward.
Marquinhos 7 (Booked) – Got the better of Jota throughout and the captain led PSG through what needed to be a composed performance.
Willian Pacho 8 – A monstrous defender who is impressing after his summer move from Eintracht Frankfurt. At 23, feels like he will have a top career.
Nuno Mendes 8 – Made some huge interventions to thwart Salah, most notably a block on four minutes. He also started the attack for the goal and was an assured presence on the ball.
Nuno Mendes stuck to his task well to keep Salah quiet for the second time in six days
Joao Neves 8 – A joy to watch. Him and Vitinha use the ball so efficiently.
Vitinha 8.5 – Never stopped running and making himself available for the ball. An incredible performance.
Fabian Ruiz 8 – The man who starts the press. Looks a giant in the PSG midfield as he is much taller than the diminutive duo next to him. Former Napoli man put in a gtreat defensive shift.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia 7 – Clearly a special player and had his moments in this match, such as some beautiful passes, but did not have quite the grip he did last week.
Ousmane Dembele 7.5 – Got his goal with an easy finish but nothing else about it was simple. A classy run and give-and-go with Barcola. Should have made it 2-0 just after the half-hour mark.
Ousmane Dembele scored the only goal of the night to take the tie to penalties
Bradley Barcola 7.5 – The best of PSG’s attackers but tired after the break. A beautiful assist for the goal but has to beat Alisson when he danced through on goal to make it 2-0. Hard luck.
Bradley Barcola was PSG’s best attacker and set up the only goal of the night
Substitutes
Desire Doue (for Barcola, 67min) – 6
Lucas Beraldo (for Marquinhos, 90+2min) – 6
Walter Zaire-Emery (for Ruiz, 90min) – 6
Lee Kang-in (for Kvaratskhelia, 101min) – NA
Goncalo Ramos (for Neves, 120+1min) – NA
Subs not used: Safonov, Tenas, Kimpembe, Ramos, Hernandez, Mayulu, Beraldo, Mbaye.
Manager
Luis Enrique 7 – Set his team up brilliantly. They defended with solidity and attacked with style.
Referee
Istvan Kovacs (Romania) 6 – Some contentious decisions but had control overall.
