3️⃣ points as PSG fight back late to draw in Real Madrid thriller | OneFootball

Paris Saint-Germain scored two late goals to leave Real Madrid with a point in a very entertaining encounter.

Karim Benzema scored twice against the French champions after VAR had did its thing but Kylian Mbappé and Pablo Sarabia netted late to make it 2-2.

Here is what we made of it …

Hazard hijacks Mbappé’s audition

This game was being billed in some quarters as a potential chance for Kylian Mbappé to show the Santiago Bernabéu that he would fit in there just fine.

But the young Frenchman, who is clearly in Real’s thoughts, had an off colour night, not helped by swapping flanks in a bid to try to play his way into the game.

He was perhaps a little overeager and was guilty of going alone in the first half when a simple square across goal would have found an unmarked Mauro Icardi.

But while he toiled, Eden Hazard was simply sublime and enjoyed perhaps his best game to date in a Real jersey.

His flicks all came off, his dribbling was delightful and led to the only goal of the game and his strength on the ball was Hulk-esque.

In fact, there is probably no better player in the world at shielding the ball using his thighs and posterior to keep opponents at bay.

He was a constant menace for Thomas Meunier, who had to resort to a frustrated kick on his compatriot which ended Hazard’s night early.

For the hope of all concerned, let’s hope it isn’t too serious.

PSG pay the penalty

We’re still scratching our heads with the first half decision that saw PSG deprived of a potentially game-changing penalty.

There is no doubt that Thibaut Courtois’ foul on Icardi was a penalty and rightly awarded, although the decision to send off the Belgian was the wrong one.

But then our old friend VAR decided to intervene for what appeared to be a check on the penalty decision.

Instead, both card and spot kick were wiped out for an alleged foul in the build-up from Idrissa Gueye on Marcelo.

While the midfielder’s arm may have been out, the contact on the Brazilian was minimal and shouldn’t have provoked the reaction it did.

It was the softest of decisions and was another example of the poor use of the technology in finding fault with a decision that it didn’t have to be made.

Isco makes most of surprise start

With much of the speculation beforehand suggesting Gareth Bale would start on the right for Real, it was a big shock to see Isco’s name on the starting sheet.

It was his first start since the defeat at Mallorca five weeks ago, to the great surprise of many.

So it was good to see the 27-year-old shine at the tip of a Real diamond in midfield and put in a performance that will get Zinedine Zidane thinking.

Los Blancos may have thrown this one away late but they were the better them for the large majority of the game, shipping the leveller moments after Isco had exited.

He looked keen to grasp his chance, impressing from the opening minutes when he pressured Presnel Kimpembe high to win a corner.

In fact, it was his defensive work that may have pleased Zidane most, doing a superb job of shackling Marquinhos, who couldn’t do likewise when the roles were reversed.

His season starts now.