After defeating Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday evening in the Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain opened the doors of its Parc des Princes to its sworn enemy Olympique de Marseille, at the end of the 6th day of Ligue 1. For this shock, coach Luis Enrique concocted a few surprises in his starting eleven. First with a fairly new system at the start of the season, swapping the traditional 4-3-3 for a more modular 4-4-2 resolutely focused on attack, with a leading duo composed of Kylian Mbappé and Randal Kolo Muani. But if the right wing was perfectly camped by Ousmane Dembélé, it was especially on the left side that the big surprise of the leader, a native of Gijon, was included with the tenure of Bradley Barcola.
Indeed, for the first time since his arrival at PSG, the former Lyonnais was a starter. A sign of confidence granted by the Parisian staff but also a life-size test for those who experienced somewhat disappointing first outings in the Parisian jersey. This Sunday evening, against OM, Barcola did not miss his meeting and showed all his qualities, proving why the Parisian management pushed hard this summer with Olympique Lyonnais to secure his services. He brought a huge amount of dynamism, involvement (10 duels won out of 14 contested, 5 balls recovered, 2 interceptions), speed and accuracy to break the Marseille defensive lines both through well-inspired crosses into space, but also with breakthroughs that are difficult to stop.
The pride of the principal concerned
Approved by the entire Parc des Princes when he left in the 82nd minute, the former OL player, credited with a 7.5 by the FM editorial team, was rewarded by the Parisian supporters but also his teammates and his coach on the edge of the lawn. “I was very happy to be the starter. I was able to show some good things I think. It was important to win this match and we did it in a good way. I think we were superior, we set a high pace from the start of the match. We tried to attack on all the actions. To also see a stadium like that was incredible. It was also a source of pride when I left. I didn’t think people were going to applaud me like that. This is a first for me”explained the native of Villeurbanne in a mixed zone.
As for Luis Enrique, the Spanish coach did not miss the opportunity to praise his young player at a press conference after the match: “It’s true, first as a starter with us for him. He is a player with fantastic progression. I love everything about him. He is a young man who has great room for improvement. He brings speed, overflows and also defensive work. He is capable of scoring and has a very good right shot. It’s a marvel to have Bradley in our squad.”. In any case, there is no doubt that Barcola scored points this Sunday in the minds of the Parisians but also the French, while the Espoirs coach Thierry Henry was present in the bays of the Parc des Princes…
