Fresh from a North London derby day mauling at the hands of Arsenal on Sunday, Spurs went to the home of the holders seeking to give Luis Enrique’s team a fright once again after their narrow Super Cup defeat in August.
However, this highly talented PSG team also had a point to prove after a defeat to Bayern Munich on matchday four, and tested the water early on when long-range attempts from Fabian Ruiz and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia flew narrowly wide.
Thomas Frank’s side were holding their own, though, and Richarlison gave them a 35th-minute lead at the end of a wonderful move. Lucas Bergvall linked up superbly with Archie Gray, whose cross from the left was headed back across goal by PSG loanee Randal Kolo Muani for the Brazilian to nod home from point-blank range.
The Parisians responded before half-time, as Quentin Ndjantou teed up Vitinha to rifle home a ferocious right-footed strike past Guglielmo Vicario, leaving this contest finely poised at the break.
Spurs would strike again just five minutes after the restart, with Kolo Muani replicating the likes of Kingsley Coman and Fernando Morientes in netting against his parent club in the UCL.
Pedro Porro’s corner caused havoc in the PSG defence, as Willian Pacho headed Archie Gray’s effort away from the goalmouth into the path of the Frenchman to fire home.
That served as a huge wake-up call for Enrique’s men, who turned the match on its head with two goals in the space of seven minutes. Vitinha netted his second with a wonderful curling left-footed effort, before Frank’s men gifted them a third when Joao Neves caught Pape Matar Sarr dawdling on the ball and fed in Ruiz to apply a clinical finish.
Frank’s side had pushed the self-destruct button from that point onwards, being the architects of their own downfall once again with some more woeful defending. After failing to clear Lee Kang-in’s corner, Pacho was on hand to score their fourth, as Tottenham conceded four goals for a second consecutive game.
However, this breathless contest took yet another twist when Kolo Muani completed a brace with a fine right-footed finish. But just when Spurs thought they had hope of a comeback, Vitinha completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot after Romero was penalised for handball in the box.
This was another sobering night for Tottenham, who will know just how far they have to go in order to compete with Europe’s elite. This defensive capitulation will be very troubling for Frank, who has now seen his team concede 11 goals across their last three games across all competitions.
Meanwhile, PSG are now purring very nicely after claiming a seventh win in their last eight UCL fixtures, but ended the match with ten men when Lucas Hernandez was deservedly shown a straight red for elbowing Xavi Simons in stoppage time.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Vitinha (Paris Saint-Germain)