Chelsea’s Nigerian midfielder John Obi Mikel scored an equaliser for the English Premier League title holders in Tuesday night’s UEFA Champions League encounter against Paris Saint-Germain, but it was not enough to stop the French team from registering a 2-1 victory.
The London side travelled to Paris for the first leg of the last 16 tie, but a strong showing from the home side ensured the win, which will put the pressure on the Blues for the return leg.
An away goal from their Nigerian midfield enforcer is a major positive for the English team, as it means that a 1-0 home victory for Chelsea would be enough for them to progress to the quarter-finals of the European flagship tournament.
PSG took the lead through star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the Swede struck a free kick which deflected into the Chelsea net.
Mikel was on hand to equalise from a Willian corner. The match was a fairly even affair for most of the 90 minutes, but Edison Cavani managed a late winner to ensure a slim lead for the Parisians.
The 2-1 win will allow PSG a psychological edge, but Chelsea will be confident that they can get a positive result at home to knock out their French opponents and move on to the quarter-finals. Ibrahimovic and Cavani may have something to say about that.
In the other Champions League encounter of the night, Benfica enjoyed a 1-0 victory over Zenit St Petersburg thanks to an injury time winner from a Jonas header.
The narrow win gives the Portuguese little advantage ahead of their second leg in Russia, which will be a difficult ask for the club from Lisbon, as the bitter cold in Eastern Europe favours Zenit.
