Paris St-Germain produced a stirring comeback to defeat Monaco in the first leg of their Champions League knockout phase play-off tie at the Stade Louis II, overturning a two-goal deficit with substitute Desire Doue at the heart of the revival.
The return leg will be played in Paris on 25 February 2026 (20:00 GMT), with the holders now carrying a precious advantage back to the capital.
The hosts made a blistering start and were ahead inside the opening minute. Folarin Balogun rose to meet Aleksandr Golovin’s cross and headed home from close range to silence the travelling support.
Monaco, who had beaten Luis Enrique’s side at the same venue in Ligue 1 in November, doubled their lead in the 18th minute. Balogun raced clear and coolly slotted beyond Matvey Safonov for his 10th goal of the season, leaving PSG reeling.
Despite being among the lowest scorers left in the competition, Monaco looked sharp and purposeful, exposing uncertainty in the visitors’ defence.
PSG were handed a route back into the contest four minutes later when Wout Faes fouled Khvicha Kvaratskhelia inside the area. Vitinha stepped up but, having missed from the spot against Newcastle in the league phase last month, was denied again as Philipp Kohn dived low to his right to save.
It appeared another setback for the French champions but it would soon spark their resurgence.
Luis Enrique turned to 20-year-old Desire Doue midway through the first half, replacing Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele with his side two goals down.
The change proved inspired.
Within minutes, Doue pulled one back, drilling a fierce effort in off the post from a tight angle in the 29th minute. His direct running immediately unsettled Monaco’s defence.
Four minutes before the break, the French forward was involved again. His strike from distance was parried by Kohn into the path of Achraf Hakimi, who finished emphatically on the half-volley to level the tie and score his first Champions League goal of the season.
Monaco’s task became significantly harder seconds after the restart when Golovin was dismissed for the second time in four days. Initially shown a yellow card for a reckless challenge on Vitinha, the decision was upgraded to red following a VAR review.
Down to 10 men, the hosts struggled to contain PSG’s growing confidence.
The decisive moment arrived in the 67th minute. Warren Zaire-Emery found Doue in space, and the substitute calmly struck past Kohn to complete the turnaround.
In doing so, Doue became the first PSG substitute to score two or more goals in a Champions League match since October 2019, a remarkable contribution on a dramatic European night.
