The new PSG, probably without Neymar, Messi and Verratti, and with Luis Enrique at its head, does it really suit the qualities of Kylian Mbappé? It is possible to doubt it.
It’s a noticeable change. While a team like Reims could leave the Parc des Princes last season with the feeling of having had an easy time against a PSG which defends with eight, Lorient, the first opponent of Paris Saint-Germain version Luis Enrique, has had the feeling of having been “choked”in the words of goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo.
However, if possession of the ball was Parisian, the final score was 0-0, which was not really the objective. “What it gains in solidity, PSG loses in creativity”observed Bruno Irlès on the set of the Canal Football Club.
A style of play that does not suit Mbappé?
The return of Kylian Mbappé could provide the solution, of course, but the Bondynois will find a different PSG from that of last season, with the departures acquired (Messi) or planned (Neymar, Verratti) of several major players. Which could serve the French international. “Leonardo said very right things. Mbappé is a goalscorer. But he needs smugglers next to him”, recalled Frédéric Antonetti. There are good technicians in the Paris squad, but not “players like Messi, Neymar and Verratti”, believes the former coach of Strasbourg.
Another problem envisaged: the style of play of Luis Enrique glimpsed against Lorient, with a high block and long phases of possession, does not really match the qualities of his star striker. “Mbappé is not going to have 30 or 40 meters in front of him, he can have that in the Champions League, but he won’t have that often in Ligue 1, warns Antonetti. He’s going to have to learn how to make deep calls, but in a small space. He has improved a lot in the combined game, but he will have to improve further. To score goals, you have to combine. ”
