Paris Saint-Germain is served. A week after his trip to Manchester City, the double reigning European champion hosts FC Barcelona as part of the third day of the Champions League. An XXL shock that looks like an early final. The European future of the two teams will not be decided after tomorrow evening’s result, but football lovers can’t wait to see two of the teams playing the most beautiful game face each other. However, the first two in the C1 ranking are not really in the same dynamic. On the Parisian side, if the first period at the Etihad Stadium reassured people, the overall performances of Luis Enrique’s men still lack consistency.
As for Barça, they are simply on cloud nine since they are undefeated since the start of the season, with two successes in two C1 matches and a series of consecutive victories in La Liga. An impressive state of form to which Luis Enrique plans to respond through the collective. “We prepare for this type of match in the same way. Champions League matches are the highest level matches you can play. I love watching all of Barça’s matches, the way they play, it’s very nice to see this type of ambition. You should know that it will be a close, complicated match, but as a team, they are very strong. Small details can make a difference. We stay focused on what we can do. We must overcome tomorrow’s problem collectively. Players can do individual feats, but that’s not what we’re looking for.”declared the Parisian coach, before continuing.
“If you have the ball, it’s because he doesn’t have it”
“There is no perfect team. We have the confidence to face Barça, but we know that they are currently improving all their results. It’s a source of motivation for us. We are keen to be the first team to beat Barça this season. (…) There was not a match where I voluntarily gave the ball away, I always want my team to have the ball. If you want to beat this team, you have to have the ball. When you don’t have the ball, you have to adapt and press to get it back, it’s easy to say, but very difficult to do. » It is even more so when, opposite, Lamine Yamal is unstoppable.
Since the start of the season, the Spanish world champion has been quite simply stratospheric with 9 goals scored and 10 assists delivered in 11 matches, in all competitions. A permanent danger that PSG will have to manage without Nuno Mendes. Used to containing the Spaniard, the Portuguese full-back suffered a muscle injury, which forced Luis Enrique to wonder who to line up in his place between Lucas Digne, Lucas Hernandez or Warren Zaire-Emery. A headache for the Ile-de-France coach, who nevertheless has an idea to reduce the influence of the Blaugrana number 10: “It’s very easy. The best way to defend on Lamine Yamal is to have the ball. If you have the ball, it’s because he doesn’t have it, so everything is calm, quiet. But we remain focused on what we can do to overcome and defend against a team with a lot of quality. You have to be attentive and overcome this with the team, not with just one player. » The message got through.
