Paris Saint-Germain hit hard for their entry into the Champions League. After four official matches without the slightest victory, the double European champion completely swept away Slovan Bratislava at the Parc des Princes with a success (6-1) which helped to dispel some of the doubts born at the start of the season. Ousmane Dembélé showed his muscles with a brace and two assists, while Ferran Torres scored a resounding hat-trick for his first European start with PSG. The Parisians above all displayed impressive offensive mastery, with 35 shots attempted including 14 on target, and an ability to constantly push back a Slovak team overwhelmed by the imposed pace.
Beyond the score, Luis Enrique can remember a lot of things from this evening. His team immediately put a lot of intensity into the pressing, recovered several balls very high and multiplied the dangerous sequences in the last twenty meters. The Dembélé-Ferran Torres tandem was particularly devastating, but there were many satisfactions, notably the great European debut of Dro Fernandez and the activity of Maghnes Akliouche. Even after conceding a goal after returning from the locker room, Paris never really shook and continued to attack until scoring a sixth goal by Fabian Ruiz at the end of the match. A real offensive demonstration which above all allows PSG to launch its title defense with an already very favorable goal difference.
Luis Enrique is sure of himself
And yet, two of the main attractions of the Parisian squad did not participate in this party. Désiré Doué and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia were both on the bench at kick-off, having been major players for PSG during the previous European conquest. Even more surprising, Luis Enrique did not consider it necessary to bring them in, even when the score was largely established, even though the Georgian and the Frenchman needed to find a little rhythm. The two men thus watched the entire Parisian demonstration from the bench, while the staff notably brought in Mika Godts, Lucas Hernandez and other rotation players like Lucas Digne, Lucas Beraldo and Senny Mayulu. A management which necessarily calls out when we know the weight taken by Doué and Kvaratskhelia in the Parisian project and their importance during the last two European campaigns. This decision is all the more unusual as seeing Doué and Kvaratskhelia go through an entire Champions League match without setting foot on the pitch has remained extremely rare for two seasons.
But Luis Enrique assumes this management and visibly intends to use the depth of his group to keep everyone involved and preserve certain executives in a season which promises to be particularly busy. At a press conference, Luis Enrique wanted to clarify this management and dot the i’s. “There is only one person who gets to choose which players play. I tried to find the best players for this match but Kvara and Doué are incredible. Kvara can win the Ballon d’Or. Like Dembélé, Vitinha and Fabian. It’s very good for me and our supporters. Having so many players likely to win the Ballon d’Or“, he said. With Ferran Torres who scores three times, Dembélé who regains his impact, Akliouche who seizes his chance and Dro Fernandez who reveals himself, the Spanish technician has new offensive solutions and can afford to make his two usual starters breathe. The fact remains that this evening also constitutes a clear message to Doué and Kvaratskhelia, competition has become fierce at PSG and even the strong men of the last two campaigns no longer have a guaranteed place in each meeting.
