Le Havre 1-5 PSG: Hakimi hits hat-trick and sets up two more at Stade Océane

Achraf Hakimi took the armband and everything else. The Moroccan full-back, captain for the night in a heavily rotated PSG side, scored three times and set up two more goals against Le Havre. Nobody else had anything like his impact, and he was substituted in the 71st minute.

The start of the game gave no hint of that tally. Le Havre, bottom of the league, caught Paris on the break and Nigeria's Josh Maja opened the scoring in the 18th minute, from a pass by Ivorian Rayan Fofana. It took eight minutes for everything to turn. In the 26th, Hakimi squared for Mika Godts. In the 28th, set up by Senny Mayulu, he found the net himself, the goal standing after a VAR check.

Matvey Safonov then protected that lead before the break, with a fine save in the 37th. The second half was all Paris: a free kick in the 55th, a counter finished by Mayulu in the 62nd, a final deflected shot in the 69th.

Paris had the ball, but Le Havre still shot

Paris played 777 passes to 302 and had 71% of possession. On shot volume, the gap is almost nil: 15 to 14. The difference shows in accuracy, with 10 shots on target for Paris and 5 for Le Havre.

Expected goals tell of a more open game than the scoreline suggests: 3.99 for Paris, 2.04 for Le Havre. The Normans had enough chances to score more, but their defence keeps leaking: their last three outings have cost them twelve goals.

A free kick, an empty net, a deflected shot

Paris's third goal sums up Hakimi's night: a right-footed curling free kick that bounces in front of the keeper before ending up in the bottom right corner. The fourth comes down to one through ball. Arnaud Bodart, starting for the first time for Le Havre, comes out too far and Mayulu, with his left foot from distance, only has to aim at the empty net.

The real turning point is the 28th minute

Le Havre held their lead for less than ten minutes. A bottom side that had just scored against the leaders could hope to settle into a long game. Paris's two-goal burst in the 26th and 28th denied them that, and it bears the mark of the same player, a defender turned attacker whenever Paris win the ball back.

Luis Enrique described that role after the match, too: free to attack when his team has the ball, bound to defend when it does not. Our SNA analysis says this goes beyond one player. Without the injured Dembélé and Kvaratskhelia, and with Vitinha, João Neves or Doué on the bench ahead of the trip to Villarreal, Paris won with their rotation. That depth is worth more than the five goals.

Boly makes his Ligue 1 bow

Luis Enrique took off Hakimi and Godts together in the 71st to bring on Quentin Ndjantou and David Boly, the latter for his first minutes in Ligue 1. Beraldo had already replaced Maghnes Akliouche in the 63rd. For Le Havre, Mbwana Samatta, on in the 65th, put two of three shots on target without changing the course of the game.

Hakimi out in front, Maja scores for Le Havre

Hakimi's first career hat-trick overshadows everything. He also attempted six shots, five on target, and played 63 passes. The one blemish: three duels won out of nine. For Le Havre, Nigeria's Josh Maja played 90 minutes and scored the only Norman goal, from a pass by Ivorian Rayan Fofana, who stayed on the pitch for 79 minutes. SNA rating: 8 for Maja, 7 for Fofana. Morocco's Amir Richardson won 5 of his 12 duels in 65 minutes, Algeria's Touba played the whole match with two shots, one on target, Senegal's Ndiaye made three tackles in 25 minutes and Tanzania's Samatta put two of three shots on target.

Twenty points on one side, two on the other

Paris have 20 points from nine matches, two more than Lille, and extend their winning run in Ligue 1 to six. Le Havre remain 18th on 2 points after a fifth consecutive defeat. Paris travel to Villarreal on Tuesday 3 November in the Champions League.

SNA Man of the Match: Achraf Hakimi

Three goals, two assists, and a hand in all five Paris goals in 71 minutes. The captain for the night scored the first hat-trick of his career, varying the methods: at the near post, from a free kick, then with a deflected shot.