Pedri's recurring slip at the top: 6 mistakes that brought Barcelona down at the Parc des Princes

Everyone inside Barcelona knew Tuesday's Champions League trip to Paris Saint-Germain would be brutally hard. That is exactly how it unfolded at the Parc des Princes.

The reigning Champions League holders beat Barcelona 4-2, a result that laid bare the sheer attacking firepower at their disposal.

Luis Enrique's men outplayed opponents who tasted defeat for the first time this season, punished for a catalogue of mistakes across the match. Yet Barcelona can take plenty from it, especially with Real Madrid waiting in Sunday's LaLiga Clasico.

Spanish newspaper "Marca" pinpointed six errors that led to Barca's downfall in Paris, and listed them as follows:

Lost balls

Barcelona's loss of possession was one of the main factors in the defeat. Inside the first five minutes, Pedri gave the ball away three times, handing Paris Saint-Germain clear openings.

After one of those losses, Kvaratskhelia rattled a shot off the post, forcing Joan Garcia into his first two saves of the night.

Two goals stemmed from turnovers in midfield, one involving Lamine Yamal. If Barcelona want to be crowned European champions, they cannot keep coughing up the ball this often, least of all in that part of the pitch.

Wide spaces

Paris Saint-Germain pounced on those errors and carved out chance after chance. Luis Enrique's men managed 15 shots on target against Barcelona, a figure no opponent had reached against Barca in the past decade.

Flick's team needs to tighten up at the back and close down the gaps in their defensive line, making their penalty area far harder to breach.

Limited effectiveness

In Europe, you have to be ruthless. Barcelona created plenty throughout the match and showed their attacking threat, but Flick's men lacked the finishing touch in front of goal.

Lamine, Raphinha and Gordon all fell short of their best, despite Lamine's wonderful strike. Flick's players managed 18 shots in total, yet only five hit the target.

Give and take

Barcelona rarely imposed their preferred rhythm. Rather than controlling the tempo, they let it become a back-and-forth slugfest that ended in victory for the French side.

There were spells in the second half when Barcelona took charge and held the ball longer than their hosts, enough to grab the equaliser. In the end, though, they lacked the control to keep possession.

The absence of Rodri

This is where Rodri matters so much. Flick has to manage his players' minutes, true, but sacrificing the midfielder in a match as big as this one against Paris Saint-Germain is hard to fathom.

Real Madrid may wait on Sunday, yet the former Ballon d'Or winner looked indispensable here. The Catalans missed him in the first half, with Pedri unable to dictate the tempo. When Rodri came on after the break alongside Gavi, neither could spark the drive the Blaugrana so badly needed.

Set pieces

Defending set pieces is another box to tick. Barcelona conceded from a corner and could not stop Lucas Hernandez's header for the second goal.

Paris Saint-Germain worked a clever routine to score and open up a 2-1 lead for the French side.