Paris (AFP)

Riyadh like at home: native of Val-d'Oise, Mahrez sank Paris SG with a sublime free kick, his favorite exercise, which propelled Manchester City to the gates of the Champions League final (2-1 ), Wednesday in the semi-final first leg.

When the Algeria international scores a free kick in a final tournament, it's usually a good omen for his team.

In this exercise, his brilliant shot, in added time against Nigeria (2-1), qualified the Fennecs in the CAN final in 2019.

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A historic title, against Senegal (1-0), which gave him the status of national hero, in the eyes of an Algeria who had been waiting for this trophy since 1990.

With the "Sky Blues", the 30-year-old attacking midfielder wrote a new chapter in his legend, in a semi-final.

About thirty meters from the cages of Keylor Navas, full axis, Mahrez did it again (71st), with a subtle strike that slipped between Leandro Paredes and Presnel Kimpembe, lax in the wall.

He screamed his joy as he walked towards the Mancunian bench, the same celebration he performed in July 2019 at the Cairo International Stadium.

Now he has to write the same conclusion, but he still has a return match next Tuesday, which the "Sky Blues" approach in an ideal situation.

Led at halftime, the English overthrew the Parisians in the second half, thanks to Kevin de Bruyne (65th) and Mahrez, therefore.

- disappointment against Lyon -

Fennec felt wings grow, having twice had the opportunity to increase the score (77th, 83rd).

Previously, his technical quality had worked wonders on the right side of the English attack, where he had a bad night for his defender Mitchel Bakker.

The story is good for the native of Sarcelles (Val-d'Oise), about twenty kilometers from the capital, who made his way into the professional world without going through the prestigious PSG training center.

"I never imagined these things. It's special to come back to where I grew up. I have never played at the Parc des Princes," he said on Tuesday.

Passed by Quimper, then Le Havre in Ligue 2, he took on an international dimension with Leicester, with which he won to everyone's surprise the Premier League in 2016, being named best player in the Championship.

His upward career took him to Manchester City in 2018, where it is Europe he hopes to put at his feet.

But in C1, he knows two eliminations like a heartbreak, each time in quarter, against Tottenham and Lyon.

"It was a big disappointment last season, the biggest disappointment of my career, against Lyon. It has helped us a lot for this season. We are better," he explained.

This season, he has achieved statistics in the Premier League (9 goals) close to that of the previous year (11).

But the quarterfinal qualification against Dortmund, with a goal from the Algerian on the return (won 2-1), makes this season special.

Already winner of the League Cup, City are also close to pocketing the Championship, pending a possible Champions League final.

In any case, Mahrez has already sharpened his weapon.

© 2021 AFP