Dynamo Kyiv holds Paris Saint-Germain to scoreless draw

Paris Saint-Germain's vision of advancing to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup took a wrong turn as they were held to a scoreless draw by Ukraine powerhouse Dynamo Kyiv at Parc des Princes.

The storyline of the match, as as so often been the case of PSG's UEFA Cup "efforts" has been Paul Le Guen subordinating the importance of the match to domestic play. While it was no surprise given his pre-match commentary, the Parisians decision to take the pitch with Claude Makélélé and Ludovic Giuly out of the starting eleven was clear indication that the fortunate arrival into the quarter-finals of the UEFA wasn't the same level of importance of its hearty supporters. Although the depth of les Rouge et Bleu is problematic, to take an advanced position at the UEFA Cup so lightly is unnerving as they missed a tremendous chance to take a lead at home.

Despite Claude Makélélé and Ludovic Giuly out of the lineup, PSG had a number of solid opportunities and will rue their missed chances. Stéphane Sessegnon and Jérôme Rothen were up to their best with Dynamo 'keeper Stanyslav Bohush continuing to live up to his promise and deny the hosts early on. In the final fifteen minutes of the opening half the Dynamo 'keeper denied Clément Chantôme and Paris-native Jérôme Rothen with match-saving work. After the break Dynamo stirred with Artem Milevskiy creating problems however they couldn't find a way past Mickaël Landreau. Péguy Luyindula made claims before the hour but they fell on deaf ears with. After the hour Mateja Kežman was introduced with twenty-three year-old Jean-Eudes Maurice making his debut fifteen minutes later but neither side were able find a way through and the match ended without further incident.

Following the match Paul Le Guen noted his frustration with the result however with his choice of lineup was a roll of the dice that did not go his way. Now, PSG will need to pull out a victory in Kyiv and rest-assured the Lobanovsky faithful will be out in full force.