Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - RC Strasbourg v Paris St Germain - Stade de la Meinau, Strasbourg, France - May 3, 2025 RC Strasbourg's Felix Lemarechal scores their second goal REUTERS/Christian Hartmann
STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) -A second-string Paris St Germain side fell to a 2–1 defeat at fourth-placed Strasbourg on Saturday, giving the Ligue 1 champions another loss in the closing stages of the campaign.
The result moved Strasbourg level on 57 points with Nice, who are third after beating visiting Reims 1-0 on Friday, in the race for a Champions League qualifying spot.
With the title wrapped up and PSG's undefeated league run ended by a 3-1 loss to Nice in the last round, the only thing at stake for the visitors was preserving a 39-game unbeaten Ligue 1 away record - the most ever in Europe's top five leagues.
However, manager Luis Enrique retained only Joao Neves from the starting lineup that featured in the 1-0 Champions League win at Arsenal in the semi-final first leg in midweek, seemingly resting key players ahead of Wednesday’s return game.
PSG went behind after 20 minutes when their defender Lucas Hernandez clumsily connected with a flicked header by Strasbourg's Mamadou Sarr from a corner, steering it into his own net to give the hosts the lead.
Strasbourg doubled their lead in first-half stoppage time when Felix Lemarechal collected the ball outside the box and curled a beautiful effort into the far corner.
Bradley Barcola pulled one back for PSG less than a minute into the second half after a swift run from midfield before he calmly slotted home.
Despite their strong start to the second half and late pressure, PSG were unable to find another goal and suffered their second consecutive league defeat.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Ken Ferris)
