It’s the kind of night every player dreads. Illia Zabarnyi lived through a nightmare on Tuesday in Paris Saint-Germain’s 7-2 win over Bayer Leverkusen. Starting unexpectedly in place of Marquinhos, the Ukrainian defender completely fell apart — in just 37 minutes.
A handball, a penalty, a red card — the full disaster combo. Things had started well, with PSG dominating and Pacho opening the scoring early. But in the 24th minute, Zabarnyi conceded a clumsy handball in the box. Yellow card and penalty! Luckily for him, Grimaldo struck the post.
Relief? Not for long. Fifteen minutes later, it got worse. Beaten for pace by Kofane, Zabarnyi dragged him down in desperation — straight red. Head down, blank stare, he walked off to boos from the BayArena crowd. A total collapse, broadcast to the world.
Marquinhos’ heir? Not yet
Ironically, Leverkusen were already down to ten men after Andrich’s dismissal. But once freed from Zabarnyi’s disaster, PSG took flight — three goals in seven minutes, a Doué double, and a Kvaratskhelia rocket.
Final score: 7-2 to Paris. A feast for the champions, but a night to forget for Zabarnyi, whose red card could cost him dearly in Luis Enrique’s defensive pecking order.
The message is clear: the boss at the back isn’t him — at least not yet.
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