Paris Saint-Germain have been held to a 1-1 draw by Montpellier away from home in Ligue 1.
Mamadou Sakho was sent off for the Parisian outfit early in the first half, but Carlo Ancelotti's side took the lead much against the run of play in the 37th minute through a wonderful goal from Maxwell.
Montpellier came back strongly in the second half and equalised on the hour-mark through Remy Cabella, but ended the game with 10 men as well after Younes Belhanda was sent off for a second bookable offence.
It was an exciting game of football, and here Sports Mole takes a closer look to see if the result was fair.
Match statistics:
Montpellier:
Shots 20
On target 3
Possession 61%
Corners 4
Fouls 24
PSG:
Shots 7
On target 4
Possession 39%
Corners 5
Fouls 12
Was the result fair?
Yes. Montpellier probably deserved to go ahead in the first half given the number of chances they created, but PSG punished the defending French champions for not taking them. The hosts, though, did come back strongly in the second half.
Montpellier's performance
Montpellier should have taken the chances they created in the first half before letting PSG take the lead in the 37th minute. They often failed to find the final killing ball, but their performance improved in the second half. However, Rene Girard will be disappointed that his side failed to pick up maximum points at home, especially after PSG went down to 10 men early in the first half.
PSG's performance
PSG were on the backfoot against Montpellier even before they had gone down to 10 men, but coach Carlo Ancelotti will be more or less happy with his team's performance. They scored their opening goal much against the run of play and created a number of good chances in the second half.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Maxwell: The PSG full-back scored one of the goals of the season on Sunday evening and was a threat down the left flank throughout. Maxwell's attacking prowess was evident for everyone to see and he also provided a strong presence at the back.
Referee's performance
Clement Turpin's decision to send off PSG defender Sakho in the opening minutes of the first half was controversial, but other than that he was solid and consistent throughout the match.
What next?
Montpellier: Mainz are away at Valenciennes in Ligue 1 next weekend.
PSG: PSG will hope to return to winning ways against Rennes at home next weekend.
Subhankar Mondal
