Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma kept his side in the Champions League against Liverpool with two wicked saves.
PSG and the Reds couldn’t be separated over two legs in the round-of-16 clash, so a penalty shootout beckoned. Donnarumma was the hero, keeping out Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones from the spot.
His important contributions brought plenty of close-ups of the Italian gloveman, leading to questions about how he obtained the scar on his face.
How Gianluigi Donnarumma got the scar on his face
Zoomed-in images of Donnarumma – ranked at no.9 in FourFourTwo's list of the best goalkeepers in the world right now – show a fairly short but deep-looking scar on his right cheek.
It looks as though it could cause some pain, but it looks worlds better than when he first obtained it while playing in Ligue 1 for Les Parisiens.
The source of Donnarumma’s scar is a game last December, away to division rivals Monaco.
The hosts’ defender Wilfried Singo was rushing towards the PSG goalkeeper, who dropped down low to stop his advances.
As the ball deflected behind for a corner, Singo’s momentum took him over the shot-stopper, his studs catching Donnarumma’s face with substantial impact.
Images taken directly after show the goalkeeper’s right eye partially closed and his face below in shreds. He was subbed off in the 22nd minute and later required 10 stitches, according to French outlet RMC Sport.
But the incident, in FourFourTwo’s opinion, merely shows the warrior-like spirit of Donnarumma.
It’s the sort of injury that could materially impact the fight-or-flight instincts of many top goalkeepers, but not the Italian.
He missed just one game for PSG, a French Cup outing against Lens, before retaking his position between the sticks against – of all teams – Monaco in the Trophee des Champions just 16 days after the initial incident.
Les Rouge-et-Bleu won both Monaco meetings but, in truth, are likely more thrilled they escaped with their no.1 in one piece – just.
