PSG have done it again.
In a turn of events that might seem unexpected on the surface but in reality should not have surprised even one person watching, PSG surrendered a two-goal aggregate lead over Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie. Despite being 1-0 ahead and 2-0 up on aggregate with 30 minutes remaining, PSG once again blew a golden opportunity, conceding a hat-trick to Real striker Karim Benzema and handing their Spanish opponents a spot in the quarterfinals.
Somehow, this team manages to outdo itself year after year when it comes to finding ways to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. From the infamous "Remontada" loss at the hands of Barcelona in 2017 to an inexplicable collapse against a Manchester United team which they should have handily beaten in 2019 to this 3-0 loss against Real - there has never been a team which so completely and utterly freezes on the biggest of stages in spite of their overwhelming talent and abundance of financial resources.
As usual, there is an enormous amount of blame to be divvied up. However, I'll start with the club itself. I don't mean the owners or the front office or anyone else who runs PSG - I'm talking about Paris Saint-Germain, the football club.
With the weight of recent history against them, it almost seems as though PSG's players expect to fail when the stakes are at their highest and the lights are brightest. No matter how large their lead, in a way they have already lost the mental battle just by putting on the PSG jersey.
To make this even more alarming, it seems as though new arrivals at the Parc des Princes have their minds "poisoned" by this negative mindset. Consider Kylian Mbappé, who before signing for PSG had put the world on notice with a stunning breakout run in the 2018 World Cup, playing a key role in France's World Cup triumph all while aged just 19. Certainly, at that point, one would not have considered him a player likely to falter under severe pressure. However, this has completely changed ever since he joined PSG. Despite scoring PSG's only goal during this match, Mbappé once again had a tough time in general - something which is no longer new to him after having joined PSG.
And now, I'd like to turn my attention to the one player who I believe has done more to foster this unprecedented run of choking than anyone else: Neymar. Let's not forget that the Brazilian's only Champions League title came with Barcelona while "riding shotgun" alongside a prime Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez. Again and again and again, Neymar has failed to deliver in the most intense, do-or-die situations. Over the years, he has been arguably the chief culprit behind PSG's repeated Champions League failures.
I have said it time and again: among all the legendary players to come out of Brazil, Neymar is arguably in the top five in terms of pure talent. However, it has become incredibly obvious: you cannot win a Champions League title with a team built around Neymar. He simply does not have that big-match mentality which is needed to elevate a team to that highest level. Of course, PSG are no longer necessarily built around Neymar, which brings me to my next point.
It's time to write the obituary for Lionel Messi's iconic career. Though he may be the greatest to ever do it, there's no more hiding the facts - he is washed. Ever since joining PSG, he has looked like an absolute shell of the player he once was. This is understandable given that he is now 34, but the decline has been utterly astonishing - it calls to mind the likes of Ronaldinho and Ronaldo Nazário, who both completely "fell off the cliff" when they aged. Add to that the fact that even Messi is not immune to the effects of simply playing for PSG, and you have your answer.
What has been happening at PSG over the past few years almost defies explanation - we may never see anything like this again. At this point, as soon as a new Champions League campaign begins, one can already start asking "and just how will PSG blow it this year?"
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