|
Paris Saint-Germain handed a debut to U.S youth international Timothy Weah, the son of former Ballon d'Or winner George Weah, in Saturday's 2-0 victory at Troyes. With PSG looking ahead to Tuesday's Champions League round-of-16 second-leg showdown with Real Madrid, coach Unai Emery opted to rest many of his starters and give a chance to some of the club's young players. After turning 18 just last week, Weah came off the bench to replace Giovani Lo Celso in the 79th minute and led the front line as PSG saw out the victory. The teenager had a chance to score in stoppage time as he broke out in space on a counter-attack, but Weah sent his shot right at the charging goalkeeper. PSG thought they had a third goal from the rebound, but it was ruled out for offside. "It was a real pleasure to play in Ligue 1 today," Weah said after the game. "I thank the coach, the staff, and the other players, who have been very friendly. I was not far away from scoring -- that would have been the icing on the cake! "I hope that I will get the chance to play again and to score some goals. After my 18th birthday recently, this is like a birthday present. I am proud to play for the club of my heart." Last April, the New York-born Weah scored twice for the U.S. under-17 team at the CONCACAF Championship and followed that in October with a hat trick in the U-17 World Cup round of 16 against Paraguay. He's made seven appearances for PSG's under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League this season and scored against Celtic's youth side in September. His father, George Weah, starred for PSG and AC Milan and won football's most prestigious individual honours in 1995, claiming both the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year award. Last December, the elder Weah was elected president of Liberia, and he took office in January.
|
