Paris Saint-Germain head coach Thomas Tuchel singled out Angel Di Maria for praise following the victory over Manchester United.
The French heavyweights were shorn of Edinson Cavani and Neymar for the first leg of this Champions League last 16 tie but still proved too strong for United as Presnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappe secured a 2-0 win at Old Trafford.
Di Maria was the architect of PSG’s victory, providing the corner that allowed Kimpembe to open the scoring in the 53rd minute before teeing up Mbappe on the hour.
Tuchel thought his Argentinian forward had been below par before the interval but was delighted he delivered a stunning riposte in the second half.
He said: “In the first half it was a bit hard for him playing right in front of me and losing many easy balls. He had a bit of a hard time because I was close to him.
“Maybe he was a bit nervous and a bit overused because he plays all the time for us. “I’m happy he stayed confident, he’s always super reliable, he always gives his best and for that it’s easy to forgive him when he has not such a good first half.
“It’s always dangerous for him from the corners and of course a superb assist, it was a perfect pass for Kylian. It was a nice comeback for him, I’m very happy for him and of course he helped us a lot.”
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