Toulouse Vs PSG, French Ligue 1: Joao Neves Hat-Trick Stuns Pink City In 9-Goal Thriller

Joao Neves scored two overhead kicks and rounded off his hat-trick with a long-range stunner as Paris Saint-Germain beat Toulouse 6-3 in remarkable fashion.

The European champions made it three wins from three Ligue 1 games this season in sensational style at Stadium de Toulouse, where Joao Neves stole the show.

Joao Neves scored two overhead kicks in the space of seven first-half minutes, either side of Bradley Barcola finishing brilliantly from a tight angle as PSG plundered three goals in the opening 15 minutes of a match for the first time in their history.

Ousmane Dembele made it 4-0 with a coolly taken penalty just after the half-hour mark, before Toulouse pulled one back through Charlie Cresswell.

Toulouse then had two chances to further reduce the deficit before the break. Nuno Mendes conceded a penalty for a foul on Aron Donnum, and Cristian Casseres stepped up to take the spot-kick. 

PSG goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier made the save, only to be pulled back for encroachment. Yet from his second attempt, Casseres was again thwarted.

Referee Eric Wattellier awarded PSG a second penalty early in the second half, this time for a rash lunge on Barcola by Djibril Sidibe, and Dembele duly made no mistake.

Joao Neves then arrowed in a sublime effort to complete a stunning hat-trick to make it 6-1, yet Toulouse still had a late flurry in them, with efforts from Yann Gboho and Alexis Vossah at least restoring some pride.

Data Debrief: Nine-goal thriller

Toulouse were aiming to start a Ligue 1 season with three wins for the first time since 2010-11, so it is no surprise they at least pushed PSG hard, albeit those late consolation goals did make the scoreline slightly more flattering.

That being said, Toulouse managed 14 shots to PSG's 13 and got six on target to their visitors' eight, while the expected goals tallies (2.23 xG for Toulouse to 2.55 for PSG) were not far apart at all.

But the clinical quality of PSG's finishing was on show, with Joao Neves rightly taking the headlines, while Dembele – who set up PSG's opener to move onto 99 career assists – showed his composure from the spot, whereas Casseres was found wanting at the other end.

Luis Enrique's PSG have now scored in each of their last 12 away games in Ligue 1 (38 goals), which is their longest streak since January to September 2021.

Joao Neves' treble, meanwhile, was the first of his senior career and the first by a central midfielder for PSG in Ligue 1.