Marseille score rare home win against rivals PSG in French Cup

MARSEILLE: Marseille celebrated their first home win against Paris Saint-Germain in more than a decade to reach the quarterfinals of the French Cup, beating their bitter rival 2-1 on Wednesday.

Cheered on by buoyant fans at a packed Stade Velodrome, Marseille had rarely looked so dominant against PSG since the Paris club started their supremacy in France after Qatari investors took over.

Marseille’s previous win at the Velodrome against PSG in all competitions dated back to November 2011.

Alexis Sanchez put the hosts in front in the fixture known as “Le Classique” of French soccer, and Ukraine attacking midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi scored the winner after Sergio Ramos pulled one back.

“We are delighted to progress to the next round, the French Cup is one of our goals,” Marseille captain Valentin Rongier said. “Our fans had been waiting for that win, we are so happy to share it with them.”

It was PSG’s third loss this season. It came ahead of a major test as Bayern Munich travel to the French capital for the first leg of their round-of-16 match in the Champions League on Feb. 14.

Igor Tudor’s players imposed an intense pressing from the start that destabilized PSG. Second-best in all sectors, the visitors were pegged in their own half and Marseille piled up chances in the first half.

The hosts could have been awarded a penalty after Achraf Hakimi elbowed the ball in the area, but referee Francois Letexier ignored calls from Marseille players.

Marseille came close with efforts from Sead Kolasinac and Cengiz Under before Sanchez dribbled past Sergio Ramos on the right side and cut back inside the box, with the Spain defender bringing him down.

This time, Letexier pointed to the spot and Sanchez wrong-footed