A few days after the solid success of Paris Saint-Germain against AC Milan, at the Parc des Princes in the Champions League, Luis Enrique’s players must refocus on the championship with a new poster far from simple, against the Stadium Brestois this weekend as part of the 10th day of Ligue 1. Present this Saturday morning at the PSG Campus in Poissy, the Parisian tactician answered journalists’ questions during the traditional pre-match press conference. And one thing is certain: the native of Gijon hopes to be able to maintain the maximum concentration of his group after such a great European performance and especially the day before a match which promises to be as special as it is difficult.
“What is clear, a goal is an injection of morale for the team that scores and which will pull down a team that is suffering. A team that concedes, it doesn’t matter whether it works with a NASA psychologist or something else, it suffers. On the other hand, a team that scores is excited, has desire. Matches change all the time because of these actions. It’s not related to a psychologist, it happens all the time. Having a psychologist on staff is so that the player can work with him confidentially. In the 21st century, anyone who does not work psychologically, trying to see everything that a professional player means, loses potential. Generally speaking, players everywhere pay close attention to this.”, explained Luis Enrique at length to answer a question about the importance of Joaquin Valdés, team psychologist. And against Brest on Sunday, the mental impact will be all the more important in this meeting with many particularities.
A match with a particular context
It is never easy to string together a victory in the championship after ten days of intense preparation for a European shock, even more so in certain conditions. PSG, third but decimated in defense, must travel to the lawn of the Francis Le Blé stadium to face Stade Brestois, solid 5th in Ligue 1 for a meeting scheduled at a rather original time, at 1 p.m.: “All matches are traps, especially at a particular time at 1:00 p.m. We’ve never played at this time. We play away, and so it will always be difficult, there will be fans who support their team. There are all the parameters of the trap match. It’s a team that hasn’t lost at home, that defends very well, that crosses a lot, that knows what to do. It’s a very complicated opponent for us, especially after a Champions League match which motivated us a lot. We have to be careful about that”then detailed the Spanish coach at length.
The forecast weather adds a little more complexity since rain and storms should appear in the Breton sky on Sunday noon to accompany the 22 actors present on the Brest meadow. Besides, Meteo France has classified the department of Finistère in orange vigilance with Storm Céline raging in France. Beyond these conditions, the general calendar with numerous international breaks also disrupts major European clubs like Paris: “That’s the difficulty we have. Luckily, I’m not going to complain about coaching international players. The three points against Marseille against a top team is the same as against a lower ranked team. All matches are worth the same points. We have to manage the match so that we are better, so that we have more chances to score than the other team. This is my job, in particular to manage the composition with the best motivated and prepared players. I saw the pitch, I saw the stadium, it’s like an English stadium. It’s an unusual schedule, it’s not an excuse, I’m not complaining, we must be on top of it”then continued the former Spanish coach.
