Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City developed a rivalry due to their respective takeovers by Middle Eastern countries, which positioned them among the tops of the competitive spectrum. Both teams became powerhouses in their domestic league, asserting an unprecedented monopoly. However, the Champions League became the ultimate target of their ambitious project. PSG reached the Champions League final first, but City was the one who tasted success in their second attempt at the showpiece. All these ingredients make the clash a feisty affair whenever the two face each other in the competition.
Manchester City have dominated this fixture in the Champions League having won four of the six meetings so far and scoring the most goals with nine. Even though PSG managed just one win, they have given a stiff fight in almost every fixture but got beaten by the superior gameplan of the English club most of the time. The financial strength of both clubs and their investments in youth academies have led to the creation of star-studded squads over the years. Watching them going against each other has given a different level of excitement around the fixture.
Here are all the encounters between PSG and Man City in Champions League history:
PSG 2-2 Man City - Thriller in the first meet (2015-16 Quarter Final 1st Leg)
The two met for the first time in the Champions League in the 2015-16 season quarterfinal stage. Both teams were gunning for the silverware that eluded them since their respective takeovers, so this encounter became significant. PSG was in their third season under Laurent Blanc and were desperate to escape a third straight elimination from this stage. Meanwhile, City was making their last-eight debut in the final season under their 2013-14 Premier League-winning coach Manuel Pellegrini. The occasion was huge for both of them and the team’s intent showed in the first leg in Paris.
The home side started strongly and got a golden opportunity to take the lead from the spot inside 15 minutes. However, City keeper Joe Hart guessed the right way of Zlatan Ibrahimović’s penalty becoming intimidating enough to cause the striker to miss two more chances in the attacking wave the visitors struggled to contain. PSG’s missed opportunity came to bite them when City took the lead completely against the run of play with Kevin De Bruyne finishing off a swift counter-attack. The lead did not last long though with Fernando’s casual touch from a goal-kick was snapped up by Ibrahimović to roll into an empty net on the stroke of half-time, making up for his penalty miss earlier in the half.
The lucky equaliser charged up the side as they began the second half in the same way, troubling the nervy City defence. Near the hour-mark, the Parisians got what they wanted with Edinson Cavani’s near-post header from Angel Di Maria’s corner was saved onto Adrien Rabiot’s path who scored easily. Moments later, Ibrahimović hit the crossbar with a difficult header with City’s back pressed against the wall. Still, PSG was found guilty again of not taking their chances with Pellegrini’s men capitalising on a missed clearance to rescue an unlikely draw, leaving the home ground stunned.
Man City 1-0 PSG - De Bruyne seals the deal (2015-16 Quarterfinal 2nd Leg)
In the first leg of the tightly contested tie, the second leg at Etihad brought a new level of excitement and anguish for the fans. The atmosphere was electrifying but did not ruffle the visitors, just like the story in the first leg, they began strongly forcing Hart to make three crucial saves including a dangerous free-kick from Ibrahimović. Gradually, City came back into their stride with a big moment in the match when Sergio Aguero was tripped by the opposition keeper Kevin Trapp in the box. But to City’s fan dismay, the club’s record goal-scorer put the spot-kick horribly wide.
That miss could have made the situation worse for the English club. However, an improved defensive organisation from the first leg helped them keep Ibrahimović at bay this time, even though Hart had to be alert to deny another stinging free-kick from the striker in the second half. Ultimately, City’s hard work to silence the Ligue 1 giants’ sprawling attack proved dividends when De Bruyne unleashed a spectacular strike from the edge of the box with their only one shot on target 15 minutes from time to send them to their first semifinal in the competition. Not before, Hart delivered a player-of-the-match performance with one final save from Cavani to secure their destiny.
PSG 1-2 Man City - Thrilling Comeback (2020-21 Semi-final 1st Leg)
Four seasons later, the two teams met again in the Champions League semi-finals, with the first leg once again played in Paris. The hosts already tasted a Champions League final and wanted to reach the stage for back-to-back seasons. The visitors were hoping to make their debut in the competition final for the first time having broken the long exodus from the last four, previously achieved by beating PSG themselves. The game was played behind closed doors due to the pandemic situation back then but that did not stop the first leg turned out to be another thriller in this fixture’s history. As the story of the previous encounter, PSG dominated the opening period of the match and took the lead through Marquinhos’s perfect header from Di Maria’s corner. However, the tide soon changed after that.
The visitors burst into life with Joao Cancelo’s cross met excellently by Bernardo Silva forcing Keylor Navas to pull off a save. The Costa Rican was called into action when Phil Foden’s goal-bound effort minutes before half-time needed saving as City ended the half strongly. That momentum carried into the second half with the visitors rejuvenated. De Bruyne became the nemesis of Paris again with his shot-cum-cross deceiving Navas to rest in the net for the equaliser. PSG completely lost the plot after that as City came at them to rip up the reward. They found the opportunity to take the lead in the tie in the 71st minute when Idrissa Gueye fouled Foden close to the penalty area.
It seemed that De Bruyne was stepping up for the resulting free-kick to complete his brace but it was Riyad Mahrez who curled it into the net evading the wall. City was in the lead and their joy multiplied when Gueye was given a straight red a few minutes later for a stud-up challenge on Ilkay Gundogan from behind. Naturally, PSG planned to stay in the tie with a man disadvantage and trailing on away goals. Although City couldn't increase their lead despite having a player advantage, they remained in a strong position to qualify for the final ahead of the second leg.
Man City 2-0 PSG - Mahrez masterclass (2020-21 Semi-final 2nd Leg)
Only a catastrophic fall in the second half would have prevented Manchester City from entering the Champions League final having a comfortable lead in the tie advantage on away goals. However, Guardiola’s side wasn’t sitting back on a snow-clad evening in Manchester taking the lead through their star winger Mahrez inside just 10 minutes. PSG now had a mountain to climb and to breach the centre-back duo of John Stones and the star signing Ruben Dias was a near-impossible task. Despite the Parisians' best efforts, they failed to manage any shot on target allowing City to seal the tie with the fascinating Algerian completing his brace in the 63rd minute. Like in the first leg, frustration got the better of the PSG players with poor all-day Di Maria getting sent off for a deliberate stamp on Fernandinho. It only added salt to the wounds as PSG faced a crushing semi-final exit while City roared to their first Champions League final in their history.
PSG 2-0 Man City - First Parisian win (2021-22 Group Stage MD 2)
The first and last group stage meetings between the teams occurred a season later, with both clubs undergoing significant transformations. The eye-catching one was of PSG as they secured the record Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi after he left Barcelona in the summer of 2021 in an attempt to win the Champions League they had desired for a long time. The Argentinian orchestrated his magic in this meeting in a revenge-seeking match for Paris. This fixture was unkind to the Parisians as they failed to win even once against Manchester City, losing the last three. Adding Messi to the star-studded frontline containing Kylian Mbappé and ex-Barcelona teammate Neymar, expectations were high to break their dismal record taking on the Premier League heavyweights.
The start of the game is exactly what they wanted with the side, managed by Mauricio Pochettino back then with Idrissa Gueye, sent off in the last home meeting, slamming the ball home in just the eighth minute of the match. City was not unfamiliar with this situation as they had overturned their deficit previously in this fixture so they fought hard for the comeback. Undoubtedly, the most glorious chance came when Rahim Sterling and Bernardo Silva hit the crossbar within 5 seconds of each other. The former’s header came off the bar while the latter could not turn in the rebound with the goal gaping about four yards out.
Guardiola’s men did not stop creating chances with Dias’s close-range header saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma who was busy between the sticks denying De Bruyne and last encounter’s difference-maker Mahrez three times. His work paid off when Messi created the moment of the match, starting a run from the halfway line and finishing with a spectacular left-footed curler after playing a neat one-two with Mbappé in classic Messi style. This was the first goal for the Barcelona legend for his new club, sealing a first memorable win for them in this fixture in front of their fans. PSG also kept a first clean sheet in this fixture thanks to their Italian shot-stopper.
Man City 2-1 PSG - showdown in second half (2021-22 Group Stage MD 5)
The reverse clash at Etihad also resulted in an entertaining match, with both teams aiming for the top spot in the group. Both teams had their best players available unlike the last one. The penultimate game of their group stage journey of the season saw City begin the clash at a high tempo, hoping to avenge their loss in the previous meeting. The side missed a handful of close opportunities with Ilkay Gundogan hitting the post while Mbappé fluffed a major chance for the visitors. The half-time ended goalless but full of action with the nerves picking up for the second half. City was the best team in the first half and that spilled into the second period but not before conceding only five minutes into the restart.
Messi made a dangerous run into the box with his deflected pass finding Mbappé who calmly finished off the chance to give PSG an unexpected lead at the Etihad. However, the home side trusted their process and kept the intensity of their attack. The move paid off with City crawling back into the match past the hour-mark after Raheem Sterling sneaked into the far post to tuck away the equaliser. The team was now motivated to find the winner but PSG had a golden chance to retake the lead.
Neymar rounded Stones to find himself one-on-one with Ederson. However, the Brazilian lost his bearings in the finish putting the ball wide. That became a turning point in the game as substitute Gabriel Jesus, who assisted the equaliser, scored the decider from a brilliantly led pass by Bernardo Silva to give City a third straight win at home in this fixture. Moreover, the Manchester-based club progressed to the last 16 as group winners.
