PSG Advances to Coupe de France Quarter-Finals with Solid Victory Over Le Mans

Coupe de France holders Paris Saint-Germain advanced to the quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory over third-tier Le Mans at the Stade Marie-Marvingt.

Goals from Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola, scored either side of half-time, secured PSG's progression, marking the long-awaited return of Presnel Kimpembe from injury.

Le Mans started brightly, with Theo Eyoum hitting the side-netting, but it wasn't long before Luis Enrique's side took control of the match.

PSG broke the deadlock in the 25th minute when Doue found the bottom left corner after Goncalo Ramos regained possession at the edge of the box.

Le Mans nearly equalized seven minutes before the break when Matvey Safonov mishandled a ball in the box, but Antoine Rabillard headed over the bar.

The Parisians sealed the win in the 71st minute when substitute Barcola received a pass from Nuno Mendes and deftly lobbed the ball over Ewan Hatfout.

Achraf Hakimi came close to adding a third goal, but his shot was saved, while Safonov stayed sharp to deny Dame Gueye's late acrobatic attempt.


Data Debrief: Parisiens March On
After suffering back-to-back exits in the previous two seasons at this stage of the competition, PSG kept their hopes of a 16th Coupe de France title alive with relative ease.

They were notably reliant on the impact of their substitutes, as Barcola (0.17), Hakimi (0.3), and Vitinha (0.02) collectively posted a higher expected goals (xG) total than any of the starting players.

Defensively, PSG's Beraldo delivered an impressive performance, completing 110 passes against Le Mans. Over the last decade, only Thiago Motta has attempted more passes in a game for PSG while maintaining 100% passing accuracy, with 126 against Wasquehal in January 2016.