Ousmane Dembélé leaves the field during the first half of PSG’s victory against Monaco.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembélé’s challenging season persisted as he exited with a suspected injury during the first half of the Champions League playoff against Monaco on Tuesday.
Désiré Doué replaced Dembélé, netted two goals, and contributed to another as PSG established a 3-2 advantage heading into the return leg next Wednesday in Paris.
Dembélé was uncertain for the match due to a leg issue and left the field in the 26th minute at Stade Louis II. The Ballon d’Or winner has faced injury setbacks throughout this season. Moments before his substitution, television footage captured him rubbing the back of his left calf and adjusting his sock.
Coach Luis Enrique stated he did not take any chances by including Dembélé in the starting lineup, who was PSG’s leading scorer last season with 35 goals.
“We are aware of each player’s condition. No risk, he trained normally,” Luis Enrique remarked. “We will need to assess if there is an injury. He took a hit in the first 15 minutes, then he was unable to run.”
PSG was down 2-0 when Dembélé departed but managed to equalize at 2-2 by halftime.
Dembélé sustained an injury early in the season while representing France and had to leave the field in the first half under similar circumstances against Bayern Munich in November.
He also encountered injury issues during his time at Barcelona.
Doué reduced the deficit for PSG two minutes later with a low shot into the bottom right corner. Doué celebrated by cupping his hands over his ears, seemingly indicating he was disregarding recent criticism of his performances.
“The coach makes his decisions. It’s always a team effort whether we win or lose,” Doué stated. “The most crucial aspect is to secure a victory in this type of match.”
Before the match, Luis Enrique had expressed dissatisfaction with some of his star players after they dropped from first place in Ligue 1 following a defeat to Rennes on Friday.
Doué played a role in PSG’s equalizer just before halftime when his shot was deflected by goalkeeper Philipp Köhn. The ball fell directly to right back Achraf Hakimi inside the penalty area, who then beat Köhn with a low shot into the bottom left corner.
Doué scored his second goal of the evening in the 67th minute after receiving a pass from Warren Zaïre-Emery at the edge of the penalty area and directing a low shot into the right corner.
Köhn had previously made a notable save to deny Vitinha’s penalty in the 22nd minute, and Monaco midfielder Aleksandr Golovin was dismissed for a reckless foul on Vitinha early in the first half.
Information from The Associated Press was utilized in this report.
