It is a scenario that Parisian supporters are starting to know. This Wednesday evening, PSG faced Liverpool in the first round of the Champions League. A shock between two teams in great shape for several months and which promised to be exciting. And in this match, in reality, there was no match as Luis Enrique's training rolled on his evening opponent. 70% ball possession, 27 shots at 2, 55 duels won (compared to 24). But on arrival, it was Liverpool who took an option on qualification with a goal in the last moments of the match signed Harvey Elliott. The Reds produced the perfect heist thanks in particular to an XXL match in Alisson, author of 9 parades.
A clearly frustrating match for Parisians who had made the perfect meeting, or almost. On paper, it was difficult to do better as PSG crushed one of the best teams in Europe. But this defeat at the end of the meeting has a bitter taste. However, this does not have something to demoralize Parisians who all made an optimistic speech after the meeting, already turning to the return match in Anfield with the firm intention of qualifying. “We go out frustrated. Frustrated to lose the match like that. We have seen that this kind of meeting has already arrived this season, especially against Atlético (1-2, November 6). It hurts to finish the match like that, but we are happy with the work we have done, happy with our efforts and we are ready to go and play there and win the match we deserve to win. With what I saw, there is hope. I saw the desire, the personality of the whole team. I didn't think it was going to happen like that. If we have this personality and the same desire, we will pass ”explained Achraf Hakimi after the meeting.
Parisians think they can reverse the trend
For his part, Vitinha was holding a fairly similar speech at the end of the meeting at the microphone of Canal+. “It is now that we will show the type of team that we are. It's been a long time since we’ve lost, it’s up to us to show our personality and our strength. We're going to go there, we're going to have a big match, we're going to score and we're going to pass, I'm sure. I'm sure it will happen to Liverpool, we're going to have a big match. »» It is true that Parisians have interesting arguments before approaching the return match. They answered all the questions of the last days, especially on the ability to set up their football in the face of a greater adversity than in Ligue 1. “We are happy with the work, the desire of the team. There is a second game left and we go there to bring the victory back there. The matches never happen twice in the same way. Keep the ball there, go attack like today. If we manage to create the same opportunities, it is sure that we will mark a minimum. We have the ability to win, we have the workforce for that. We will continue on the same dynamic as since the beginning of 2025 ”Concluded Achraf Hakimi in the mixed zone.
“It's football, things are not always going in our direction. The truth is that we did a lot to deserve victory. We have to get up. We made an excellent match and we know what we can do. If we do things well, we will get a result there. I am convinced that we will win there. (…) We are a big team, the group is united ” held Pacho. Despite the defeat, the Parisians seem more than confident for the return match. And it is generally the mentality of Luis Enrique who never stopped supporting his team when she lacked success. He did not change his speeches this Wednesday at a press conference on Wednesday. “There will be an aggressive atmosphere there, but we have nothing to lose now. We will go there without speculating. We already returned these kinds of situations: last year, we had lost our home match in the quarterfinals but we had still qualified. We know that it will be difficult (in Liverpool), but again we have nothing more to lose and it makes us more dangerous. We will try to look Liverpool in the eyes (…) I think that the analysis of the match is not difficult to do. We were much higher in Liverpool in the game and at the level of the opportunities created ». Despite the match scenario, PSG seems very confident for the return round. It will be necessary to make the opportunities on the side of Anfield and hope not to come across a large Alisson. But the Parisians say it: they are certain of their strength and Liverpool must be wary.
