Desire Doue and Ousmane Dembélé marked their returns to the Paris Saint-Germain starting XI by securing a 2-1 win over Paris FC on Sunday as the French capital enjoyed its first top-flight derby since 1990.
Victory for Luis Enrique’s second-placed PSG, thanks to goals either side of half-time from Doué and Dembélé, cut the lead to within one point of surprise leaders Lens.
The last time PSG lost at home to a promoted team was in May 2010, when they lost 3-1 to Montpellier.
But there were few chances of that streak being broken in the first Paris derby in the top division since February 25, 1990, when Racing Paris 1 defeated PSG 2-1 at the Parc des Princes they shared.
Neither side’s starters at the Parc on Sunday were born when that match took place, and both clubs are a world away from where they were almost 36 years ago.
PSG, backed by Qatar since 2011, has since won 12 of the 13 French league titles, as well as the Champions League last season.
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If PSG are the top dog in the City of Light, PFC’s solid performance has firmly cemented its place as the second strongest side in Paris after the Arnault family, owners of LVMH, invested in it last season and were immediately promoted to Ligue 1.
Dominant PSG thought they had a penalty midway through the opening period when Doue burst into the penalty area and was felled by Otavio, but a VAR review found the initial contact had occurred outside the penalty area.
But the 20-year-old left nothing to VAR the next time he drove into the PFC area, perfectly timing his run onto Fabian Ruiz’s pass after 45 minutes and hammering the ball past Kevin Trapp.
The second period started chaotically as Illya Zabarnyi Alimami rounded Gory in the penalty area and Willem Geubbels equalized for the visitors after 51 minutes.
Parity lasted just two minutes, however, when Ballon d’Or holder Dembélé intervened and hit a left-footed shot that took a huge deflection on its way past a helpless Trapp.
PSG goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier was called into action a few more times in the remainder of the match, but the reigning champions were able to keep PFC at bay to win a highly anticipated encounter.
Published on January 5, 2026
