Rio Ferdinand slams PSG as 'lazy and lightweight' in Newcastle defeat

10/05/2023 Soccer

Rio Ferdinand slams PSG as ‘lazy and lightweight’ after the Ligue 1 giants are blown away by Newcastle in the Champions League

  • Newcastle cruised to a huge 4-1 win over French champions PSG on Wednesday 
  • Rio Ferdinand slammed the approach of the PSG team in the Champions League 
  • Click HERE to listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s ‘It’s All Kicking Off’

Rio Ferdinand has criticised PSG’s tactical approach after the reigning French champions suffered a bruising 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United in the Champions League.

Miguel Almiron, Dan Burn and Sean Longstaff fired the in-form Magpies 3-0 ahead at St James’ Park.

Lucas Hernandez pulled one back for PSG in the 56th minute, before Fabian Schar sealed a superb victory for Newcastle with a superb shot from distance in stoppage time.

The result marked a perfect home return to the Champions League for Newcastle after a 20-year absence, as well as the latest disappointment suffered by regulars PSG in the competition.

Former Man United star Ferdinand, speaking on TNT Sports, expressed surprise at PSG’s tactical approach to the match and accused the team of being lazy and lacking concentration.

Reigning French champions PSG suffered a bruising 4-1 defeat to Newcastle on Wednesday

Former Man United defender Rio Ferdinand criticised PSG’s approach to the match as ‘lazy’

Ferdinand believed PSG’s tactics left teenage midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery exposed

Your browser does not support iframes.

‘In the first minute, they were in a good position, but they go back to the goalkeeper and they gave Newcastle chance to get the crowd up,’ Ferdinand said.

‘At one point they give the ball away three times in 20 seconds, they had really bad starts to each half and end up getting punished.

‘Slack, lazy, lack of concentration, focus – all of the above. It’s the opposite when you look at the Newcastle team, who were truly focused, concentrating, dynamic, aggressive.

‘Tactically you have to get it right on the big stage. If you don’t you get punished especially in an atmosphere, a cauldron like this.

‘The way PSG approached this game, 4-2-4, light in midfield, lightweight, with a young 17-year-old [Warren Zaire-Emery] playing four players up the pitch at all points. They got punished today.’

The result saw Newcastle move to the top of Group F, with Eddie Howe’s side earning four points from their opening two Champions League matches.

Defeat leaves PSG second in the ‘Group of Death’ on three points, followed by AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund.  

Paris Saint-Germain are now second in the ‘Group of Death’ behind Newcastle after their loss

Ferdinand said Eddie Howe’s side were ‘truly focused, concentrating, dynamic and aggressive’

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football, launching with a preview show today and every week this season.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube , Apple Music and Spotify

Your browser does not support iframes.


Source: Read Full Article