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Paris Saint-Germain’s 2–1 Champions League victory over Barcelona on October 1, 2025, was about individual battles in the flanks but also a social media showdown before the match.
Nuno Mendes made a great run to set up Senny Mayulu for the equaliser, and Achraf Hakimi assisted Gonçalo Ramos for the winner and made a crucial goalline clearance.
Mendes was man of the match, and Hakimi highlighted it on Instagram with a shrug and a zipper-mouth emojis — which could definitely translate to “What can I say? No further comment.” It appeared to be a nod to Barcelona’s pre-match social media trolling.
« 🤷♂️🤐 »
Achraf Hakimi 🇲🇦 en story Insta. 📲 pic.twitter.com/jmqKWXOFdq
— Actu Foot (@ActuFoot_) October 1, 2025
The Hakimi-Yamal Instagram showdown
Before the match, Lamine Yamal posted several Instagram stories targeting PSG’s defense, including: “Pressure? What pressure?” with a photo of his celebration against France. In June he posted another saying “I’m back” and ready for his mission, implying Champions League ambitions.
Before the match, Hakimi had already publicly supported Nuno Mendes in the press, calling him the “best left back” in the world, and emphasizing that he had faith in his teammate to “stop” Yamal.
Indeed, that’s exactly what happened. On the pitch, Mendes dominated his side, with Hakimi’s pace and defensive power neutralizing Yamal’s influence, helping PSG turn the score around.
Post-match, PSG players responded to the social media taunts. Vitinha said: “There are often statements made before matches, and it can happen. We don’t give a damn. We don’t care, we just want to play the match, we won, and we’re happy about that.”
Gonçalo Ramos added “If you’re the best, you have to prove it on the pitch, not talk about it.”
And based on Hakimi’s Instagram story with Mendes, that was the case. The result, on-field supremacy over pre-match trash-talking, subtly responding to Yamal’s trolling.
