Ah, the first weeks of coaching at PSG, everything is serenity and joie de vivre. Well, not always. We remember the first successful steps of Thomas Tuchel, during his pre-season tour in Singapore in 2018, cut off from internationals due to the World Cup, or the excellent start to his term of office by Christophe Galtier, who left for Japan with his new troop. For Luis Enrique, it’s already a little more complicated, after three first friendly matches which above all demonstrated the extent of the work.
However, one could legitimately think that the sports management had already worked well with the presence of several recruits (Skriniar, L. Hernandez, Asensio, Kang-In Lee, Ndour, Ugarte), who would reshuffle the cards. But the unexpected absence of Kylian Mbappé, decided in high places, is already changing the outlook on this pre-season. Already because without the French star, the attacking face of the Parisian club is very sad. The best striker is also the only one present in the group, namely Hugo Ekitike, with two goals to his credit after three warm-up matches. Luis Enrique installed Marco Asensio, unsuccessfully, and stealthily Ismaël Gharbi and Ilyes Housni. The Mbappé case is also growing so much that it neutralizes the communication of the Spanish coach, who does not give any press conference during the Japanese tour. He who does not really appreciate the exercise will not complain about it. For the clarity of the sporting choices, it will be necessary to iron.
In addition to an offensive sector in total recomposition pending the outcome of the Mbappé file, the rest is no longer in keeping. There is a plug in the middle of the field. The first preparation matches gave glimpses of the promises of Cher Ndour and the fears of Manuel Ugarte. The Uruguayan, recruited for 60 M€ at Sporting, seems very light technically compared to his partners, and he compensates with an aggressiveness at the limit. Above all, he takes no risks with the leather and essentially plays backwards or laterally.
Warren Zaire-Emery, who revealed himself to the Parisian staff at the same time last year, continues to impress with his maturity and his involvement. Carlos Soler continues to be carried around on the wings, Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz remain on the same bases, and the real questioning concerns Marco Verratti, who started the last two matches on the bench, but who also recovered the captain’s armband once once Marquinhos came out. In the 4-3-3 set up by Luis Enrique, he especially lacked individual percussion, the players seeming to be satisfied with phases of possession as sterile as they are boring. Neymar will be the one capable of boosting the Parisian game, if his physique offers him more than half a season to play.
An already worrying defense
Another concern of the first Parisian outings concerns the defensive sector. Sector which has however welcomed sacred customers with Lucas Hernandez and Skriniar. Luis Enrique spared susceptibilities by aligning different hinges at each meeting, mixing with Danilo and Marquinhos (Kimpembe is still absent). No association seemed to take the upper hand, and on the contrary, we still saw problems that had become chronic, in particular regarding depth management. Against Osaka, two goals came from individual errors (including Skriniar and Hernandez). We felt the excitement and a lack of automation, quite logical at this stage of the season.
So, should we be overly concerned about the mixed impression left by this new look PSG? The pre-season of the Galtier year had been excellent for an ultimately disappointing overall result. This therefore does not mean much, between a still uncertain physical level and an opposition that is not always in focus. But it still gives some indication of the coach’s choices, failing to hear him speak. For the first truths, it will be necessary to wait until August 12 and the first day of Ligue 1, against Lorient.
