PSG 'didn't need to play with 16 men' - Lyon accuse referee and assistants of siding with Ligue 1 giants as stoppage time red card and goal decide headline clash

Lyon and PSG went toe-to-toe on Sunday night in one of the most gripping fixtures of the weekend. PSG, desperate to reclaim top spot, struck first through Warren Zaire-Emery after just 10 minutes. Lyon hit back through Afonso Moreira’s sharp finish before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s curling effort restored the visitors’ lead.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles then unleashed a thunderous long-range equaliser to make it 2-2, setting up a breathtaking finale. PSG pressed relentlessly and reaped the rewards in stoppage time when Joao Neves rose highest from a corner to head home the winner, silencing the Groupama Stadium. Seconds before that, Lyon left-back Tagliafico was shown a straight red card for a late tackle on Vitinha, leaving his side down to 10 men just before PSG’s decisive corner. VAR upheld the call and that decision sent the Lyon camp into fury.

After the final whistle, assistant coach Jorge Maciel exploded in anger. “Conducting refereeing analyses every weekend and in every stadium in the country is going to be difficult. It’s up to us to do the work with our team, and we’re very proud of the work we’ve done. I think there are 59,000 people in the stadium, and only four of them didn’t watch the fouls we analysed. We don’t even need to watch the replays. When it happens one way, we don’t understand it. When it happens with the arrogance of not even having the opportunity to discuss it, we don’t understand it,” he said in a post-match interview.

"We see Nico, he was clearly sent off. But how many fouls did Afonso [Moreira] suffer? They didn’t get any cards. I think they were the best team in Europe. I don't think they needed to play with 16 men, because I'm also counting VAR, against a team that played on Thursday, that prepared very well for the match and played a great game."

Lyon’s technical director Matthieu Louis-Jean also voiced his frustrations at length, delivering a scathing assessment of the refereeing.

"I’d like to start by really congratulating the team. We saw a very good side of Olympique Lyonnais tonight. We’re very proud of our team’s performance," he said. "The coach had a great game too. The team caused PSG problems. Tonight, there’s extreme disappointment because we believe there were some significant refereeing errors. And once again, we’re completely baffled… Look, Illia Zabarnyi had a penalty. There’s a clear handball, in my opinion, we saw the replays. There’s a foul on Tanner Tessmann, he touches his knee. It’s blatant. At some point, I don’t know what to do. We tried everything. We talked. We discussed it with them. We even went to see them. But it continues. We don’t understand. There’s a real problem with consistency in the refereeing."

Louis-Jean further pointed out other controversial inconsistencies in Ligue 1 refereeing: "There was a red card for Monaco that is incomprehensible. At some point, we have to ask ourselves some questions. At some point, we're going to have to sit down and think about our refereeing. Because every weekend, it's not just us. I think all the Ligue 1 teams feel there are problems. Once again, I'm baffled. What needs to be done? What needs to be done to have fair refereeing every weekend in Ligue 1? We've seen these kinds of incidents in the past. I'll go back to the Rennes match, for example. We probably got some extra points. And this evening, once again, Mr. Bastien's refereeing was a disaster. No, I didn't see the referees after the match. Anyway, they never say anything. And on Monday, the week will start without any problems."

Lyon player Corentin Tolisso echoed the frustration, calling for more accountability: “We need better refereeing in general because there are mistakes every weekend. There’s no consistency or dialogue.”

Despite the controversy, PSG’s late win pushed them back to first place with 27 points, narrowly ahead of Marseille and Lens with 25 points each. Strasbourg and Lille complete the top five with 20 points apiece, followed by Lyon in sixth who are left fuming but still very much in the race.

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While the headlines focused on refereeing, PSG’s own challenges are mounting. Achraf Hakimi, Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Nuno Mendes are all sidelined, dealing a heavy blow to Luis Enrique’s squad depth. Hakimi's severe ankle sprain against Bayern Munich could keep him out for up to eight weeks, while Mendes continues to recover from a left knee sprain.

In their absence, Enrique has turned to his younger talents, Senny Mayulu and Kang-In Lee, both of whom impressed with composure beyond their years. Mayulu’s directness and Lee’s intelligent movement have injected new dynamism, ensuring PSG maintain their attacking rhythm despite missing key stars.

But the standout has been Vitinha, who has quietly become the heartbeat of Enrique’s system. The Portuguese midfielder, recently voted PSG vice-captain, now leads the Ligue 1 charts for assists among midfielders with six in 11 games, alongside one goal. Enrique praised his midfielder earlier this week, calling him “a silent leader who does everything with precision and purpose.”

For Enrique, the upcoming international break couldn’t come at a better time. PSG are managing a lengthy injury list, and this two-week pause offers crucial recovery space for key players. The focus at Camp des Loges will be on rehabilitation and tactical refinement, particularly testing new combinations to compensate for missing full-backs and wingers.

It’s also a chance for Enrique to recalibrate his system. With rotations expected and youth players stepping up, the Spaniard will aim to preserve momentum without overloading his core squad. The break allows him to reintroduce balance to a team that’s been grinding through a demanding Ligue 1 and Champions League schedule.

PSG will resume domestic action on November 22 against Le Havre, before hosting Tottenham in the Champions League on November 26.