SOC: Detroit's soccer desire

In preparation for this piece, I attended the Paris Saint-Germain vs. A.S. Roma match at Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan on July 19, 2017. It was the first soccer match in park history, and could be the beginning of a campaign for a Detroit MLS team. Dani Alves made his first start at right-back for PSG in this game.

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and A.S. Roma found themselves in an unfamiliar place on Wednesday night. In fact, everyone found themselves in an unfamiliar place, because Comerica Park had never hosted a soccer game before. With a recent desire for an MLS team, Detroit fans proved on Wednesday that it is capable of happening in the Motor City. Out of Comerica Park's capacity of approximately 40,000 people, 36,000 people, including myself, witnessed one of the premier teams in the world win a classic penalty shoot out.

And that team was PSG. The game started off slow with both sides struggling to jump ahead. But in the 36' mark, Marquinhos buried the first goal to make it one-nil. Coming out of halftime, A.S. Roma threatened repeatedly then ultimately scored on a beautiful pass with a shot that rifled in between goal keeper Alphonse Areola's legs by Umar. After the two clubs stalled until penalties, Marquinhos capped off his great night with the winner, winning 5-3 in penalty kicks, and PSG was able to fly out of DTW with a W.

Photo Credit: Haley Picklo.