The Brazilian team Botafogo shocked the European giants Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) by winning 1-0 in the group stage of the FIFA Club World Cup at the famous Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena on Thursday.
Even though PSG had the ball most of the time, Botafogo’s tight defense made it hard for the French champions to score. Jefferson Savarino took advantage of a turnover in the middle of the field in the 36th minute and sent a nicely weighted through pass to Igor Jesus. The forward got past two defenders and took a shot that hit PSG’s Willian Pacho and went into the net, wrong-footing the goalkeeper and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
Botafogo kept their structure and took more pressure in the second half. PSG thought they had tied the game in the 79th minute, but the goal was deemed offside. Botafogo held on to win in a historic way.
After the game, Botafogo head coach Renato Paiva praised how well his players worked together and followed their plans. Paiva remarked, “The big secret of this PSG team is that they are a great team. They all defend and attack together, and that’s why they compete and win.”
He told his guys to work together to attack and defend, and they did a great job at it.
“They are a great group. I mentioned this: PSG is a lesson for everyone in football these days. I advised my players to work together as a team, enjoy playing together, attack together, and defend together. And they did it. Great.
At the same time, Spanish team Atletico de Madrid beat MLS team Seattle Sounders 3-1 in another group-stage match.
