PSG fans wowed: How Ukrainian star Zabarnyi shined in his first match
Illia Zabarnyi (photo: instagram.com/psg)
Ukrainian defender Illia Zabarnyi made a successful debut for Paris Saint-Germain against Nantes in the French league.
PSG vs Nantes
The first half ended goalless, although PSG fully controlled the game. The Parisians had possession 74% of the time, took nine shots, hit the target twice, and once struck the goal frame.
The only goal of the match came in the 67th minute. Defender Nuno Mendes passed to Vitinha, who shot from the edge of the penalty area past Nantes goalkeeper Anthony Lopes. Ten minutes later, Gonçalo Ramos could have scored, but his goal after Vitinha’s assist was canceled due to offside.
Zabarnyi's performance
Illia Zabarnyi played the full match. In 90 minutes, the Ukrainian made one clearance and one interception, won two ground duels, but lost two aerial duels.
The defender completed 64 passes, 61 of which were accurate, but lost the ball five times.
The statistics portal SofaScore rated Zabarnyi's debut at 7.3, the fourth-highest rating among all participants in the match.
Fan reaction
After the game, fans praised the Ukrainian's reliable performance. On social media, Zabarnyi was called a "true boss," with his calm defensive actions highlighted.
"Zabarnyi, excellent debut, bravo to him," wrote one fan.
"Very pleased with Illia's first match. You could see why Luis Enrique insisted so much on his transfer," noted another fan.
Although some users mentioned a few inaccurate passes at the start of the game, the overall assessment of the Ukrainian's performance was mostly positive.
About Zabarnyi
The 22-year-old central defender recently joined PSG from English club Bournemouth for 63 million euros, becoming the second most expensive Ukrainian footballer in history.
Last season, he played 39 matches for the English club, made one assist, and started 37 games.
For the Ukrainian national team, Zabarnyi has played 49 matches and scored three goals.
He is also among the top three youngest captains of the national team, having led it on the field at 22 years and 283 days old.
Next match
In the second round of Ligue 1, Paris Saint-Germain will face Angers. The match will take place on Friday, August 22, starting at 21:45 Kyiv time.
Recall that last season PSG won the most prestigious European trophy, the Champions League, becoming tournament winners for the first time in history. After that, Luis Enrique's team added another title, winning the UEFA Super Cup against Tottenham.
