A reference among central defenders in Europe following six quality seasons between 2017 and 2023 for Inter Milan, Milan Škriniar (29 years old) arrived free last summer. Wanting to offer himself a new challenge by leaving his comfort zone, the Slovak was seduced by the approach of Paris Saint-Germain. On the file for a year, the Ile-de-France residents went on the attack in the summer 2022 and winter 2023 transfer windows but were resigned to waiting until the native of Žiar nad Hronom was free. The start of a beautiful love story? Not really since Milan Škriniar’s performances oscillated between good and bad, delivering a rather disappointing overall result.
Playing 32 matches (1 goal), he left the radar at the end of the season with 5 starts in 2024 for 0 appearances in the Champions League. A downgrade to which he returned in an interview for the Slovak media Sports Web. He also admitted that his level after the injury was below expectations: “Until my injury, I was one of the most used players on the team. I was supposed to be gone for four and a half months, but I came back two months early. Of course, it could have been better after the injury. There is a lot of competition and you have to fight for a place. When the coach needed me, I was ready for five, ten minutes… And I’m happy to have played full matches at the end of the season.”
No question of leaving for Milan Škriniar
Precisely, Milan Škriniar returned to business much more quickly and was notably galvanized by Euro 2024 which he will play with Slovakia. Motivated at the end of the season, he knows that his physical condition was not in his favor when it came to contesting a starting place: “For me it wasn’t very painful, but it showed that it was serious. The first information scared me. I told myself there was no way I could be gone this long. The duration of treatment is specific to each person, it is important to work on yourself. I had surgery in Qatar and the treatment at the time of the injury was excellent. I was happy to be able to train with the team after only two and a half months. The idea of the Euro also motivated me to come back.
Aware of having a physically demanding game, Milan Škriniar knows that this had an impact on his performance: “I know that if I am not in perfect physical condition, I cannot perform well. I’m not saying I didn’t play at the end of the season because I was still injured. As soon as I came back to the team, I was ready to play. That’s how it is now.” Now on the bench at Paris Saint-Germain, Milan Škriniar will have to fight and rumors of departure have started to arise. However, there is no question of throwing in the towel for the winner of Serie A 2021: “I didn’t pay attention to it. But it chilled me when my wife, my father, my mother, my brother asked me the question. I didn’t hear anything like that from the coach or the sports director of the club, no one told me that they weren’t counting on me, that I should look for a new club. The injury has slowed me down, but I’m moving forward. I feel good in Paris, I have never regretted taking the plunge. It’s an excellent club in every way. The three trophies we won were added to my collection.” It is therefore revengeful that Milan Škriniar intends to resume his history with Paris Saint-Germain at the start of the school year.
