On Saturday, as part of the quarter-finals of the 2025 Club World Cup, Paris Saint-Germain take on Bayern Munich at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (kick-off 6pm CET, broadcast on DAZN). On the eve of the match, Paris coach Luis Enrique answered a number of questions at a press conference.
Luis Enrique: “I have no feeling of revenge”.
Do you encourage the feeling of revenge after the Champions League defeat, and can it bear fruit?
For me, it’s a bit different because I don’t have any feelings of revenge. Revenge for what? It was a group match. No revenge for me, it’s a motivating match because it’s a quarter-final in a new competition and for me, that’s enough. It’s not a revenge match for me.
You were confident despite the defeat after Munich. What did you see that changed at that moment?
Did I say that? I can’t remember. I think I talk to you a lot. It’s very easy to say where I think the turning point was. I think that all season long, we’ve seen the team improve. At the start of the season, it was mainly a lack of efficiency, especially in the Champions League. We’ve been able to appreciate the change, but that’s not where it really clicked, but I’m very happy with the season and the way it’s gone.
Luis Enrique “I’m very happy to have him back with the team”.
Dembélé has said he can start. What do you think?
As far as Ousmane is concerned, he did the whole week’s training with the group. That training gave me a lot of information and I’m very happy to have him back with the team. We’ll see, it’s not the moment to give information to my opponent and Bayern Munich, we’ll see tomorrow.
It’s been 5 days since the last match. Did you have to remotivate the team, or are they as full of energy as we’ve seen?
To be honest, it’s been a very long time, 6 days between the two games. For me, that’s a lot, especially at the end of the season, but we had a really good training session this week. We’ve done a good job and I think the team is ready to be competitive tomorrow. Of course, it’s going to be a tough match against Bayern Munich, one of the best teams in this competition and in Europe. I think we can expect a very good match.
Luis Enrique “It’s a play”.
How did you find the osmosis between your forwards? Do you like to win the ball back quickly and play high up the pitch? Can you do the same against Bayern Munich, who know how to get the ball out?
Yes. It would be interesting to think about this if we were in a coaching class and share our thoughts with my colleagues, but I’m not going to say anything, of course, because we’re obviously going to change things. I know that teams have to adapt. There’s no magic in soccer. It doesn’t work when there’s pressing only in one direction.
That’s the difficulty in modern soccer. All the coaches are ready, and the players are as physically and technically prepared as ever. You adapt, you improvise and you stop being predictable for the rival or you’re dead. That’s why it’s great and motivating for me as a coach. You have to change, you have to improve.
I like what I see, but the teams opposite are starting to find solutions. It’s a play. That’s also why I don’t say everything in front of the press, so you don’t learn too much. As for the other question, we like our strikers to have the ability to score goals and make decisive passes. I want them to be able to break through in one-on-one situations. Few teams play with pure wingers, because that type of player is rare. We have five players who can play
It’s a play. That’s also why I don’t say everything in front of the press, so you don’t find out too much. As for the other question, we like our forwards to have the ability to score goals and make assists. I want them to be able to break through in one-on-one situations. Few teams play with pure wingers, because that type of player is rare.
We have five players who can play in any position. That gives the team a lot of options and a lot of choices for me. Possession of the ball is something we’re looking for, but if we can speed up the game and go faster up front, then we’ll do it. In that sense, I’m lucky to have all these players.
Luis Enrique “I think it’s the worst news we can receive”.
We’ve learned of Diogo Jota’s death. How are the players who played alongside him for Portugal coping with the situation, and how will they face tomorrow’s match in this context?
I think this is the worst news we can receive. The whole soccer world is affected. I can imagine what the family is going through and we can show them all our support. The news is so tragic that there’s no chance of relief, but time will heal, so to speak, and make these losses bearable.
It was very sad, we were really shocked and it was very difficult for everyone, especially for the Portuguese players who had played with him. But that’s life, you have to accept it, but it’s very hard.
Dembélé and other strikers often talk about the space you give them to express themselves. Is freedom the most important word for you?
Everyone can call it what they like. The player already knows the requirements. When we have a team where everyone works for the team, the responsibility you acquire is a greater responsibility than individual responsibility. It’s not just that you play well and play your part, but that you have to make it benefit the team.
To do that, there’s a series of responsibilities. If you want to call it freedom, freedom is fighting for your mate, freedom is fighting for your team, freedom is fighting for your club, fighting to play soccer, that’s what we’re looking for. I think this group of players has taken that thinking to a very high level. It means playing good soccer, trying to put on a show, and not just going for the win.
We see that as something attractive, and people like our fans like that in particular, but so do all soccer fans. We can win, we can lose, but what can we do? We’re going to try to play well and we’re going to use quality players to win, and I think there’s no doubt about that.
Luis Enrique “It’s going to be a very open game, it’s going to be a fun game for the spectators”.
What’s the key to beating tomorrow’s opponents?
We know our opponents well. And as well as having played them already this season, we know the profile of the team, but also the profile of their coach and what he’s looking for. I think they’re a team very similar to ours in that they like to play with the ball, but also in their attitude when they don’t have it.
Tomorrow’s going to be an open game, with strikers on both sides passing the ball back and forth. I don’t think we’ll have the same level of control from either side in this match. It’s going to be a very open game, and a fun one for the spectators. It’s obviously a test, as it always is, and it can take us further in the competition if we’re able to beat them, and that’s something very motivating.
It’s a very clear objective, and we’re also aware of the level of our opponents. I think we’re in a very positive moment for a number of reasons and for several months now, and we want to continue to build on that.
Luis Enrique: “The aim is to put on a show for our fans”.
We can see that your team has taken on board everything you’ve asked of them, when did you achieve all this?
It’s very easy, it’s very basic, it’s very simple at the same time, even if in the end it’s all very difficult. It’s very easy with words when it’s more complicated. I think that’s the key to everything we offer. For me, the key as a trainer is that the idea I’m trying to convey is a good one. In fact, when I go to a club, the aim is to put on a show for our fans.
People go to the cinema or the theater and don’t want to be bored, that’s out of the question. Just winning doesn’t make a good film or play. We want to have fun and put on an interesting show. That’s what we looked for in the player profiles we recruited. We’ve started with rounds with the ball, which is the best way to start.
And then 90% to 100% of our training with the ball, even if of course we have to defend. We want to do it as efficiently as possible and as attractively as possible for the player. All coaches have to deal with this in relation to their own experience and tastes. I come from a ‘school’, FC Barcelona, where everything revolves around the ball, and from there I feel very comfortable with what I’m trying to convey.
All the teams I’ve worked with have tried to do the same thing. With some we succeeded better than with others, but the objectives were clear and were always to win by playing good soccer, because I’m convinced that by trying to play good soccer I’m more likely to win.
You’ve improved since the Bayern Munich match, but have your opponents improved too, and what has changed?
I don’t know, you’ll have to ask his coach. Sorry about that.
Luis Enrique “They have very similar models to our team”.
What do you think of Vincent Kompany and how do you see him as a coach? You’re going up against a great team as European champions, what are their qualities and shortcomings?
As far as his team is concerned, I think I’ve already answered my question. I can see that it’s a similar team to ours, in terms of who wants the ball and who’s going to get it. When you have it, you can play in two ways. If you put pressure on them, you have to manage the depth with their fast players. And if you don’t apply pressure, you expose yourself. It’s a very high-level club, as their history proves and demonstrates.
Their coach is a very good coach who is playing his second season with Bayern Munich. I think he’s done very well and I’m convinced he’s passed on all the nuances to his team. There’s no doubt about it, he’s a top-class coach.
How do you find the pitch?
Worse than the previous match. I don’t think it’s as good as last time, and I think we can improve it with a little water. We’ll see.
Luis Enrique: “It will be difficult for both teams”.
The president has said he wants to make history in this competition. What do you think? And what are the keys for tomorrow?
Well, the keys will undoubtedly be the same as for our opponents, which is to take advantage of the game situations we’ll have and manage the little details that are always important when there are two opponents of this quality, and from then on we’ll have to adapt and manage the game in the best possible way.
What’s more, it’s obvious that we’re all looking to go as far as possible in the competition, despite the competition, and we want to be ready to win the trophy. But we’re still in the quarter-finals, we’ve got a rival at our level and we’re sure we’re prepared, but it’s going to be tough for both teams.
Do you think your current system can continue to win for several years? Or do you think you’ll have to keep adapting?
It’s not really the system, you don’t just do a training course and that’s it! It works! We have to be unpredictable for our opponents and predictable for ourselves. We’re looking to play and when you look at the teams in front of us, a lot of them are looking to use space and don’t change much, it’s more or less the same thing.
It’s not a system, it’s a collective idea. It’s not a system where you put this and this here and it works. It’s more complicated than that, what we’re looking for is unpredictability.
Do you like the Bundesliga? Wouldn’t Bradley Barcola go to Bayern Munich?
Who knows what can happen at the mercato? But it’s obvious that we’ve taken a gamble with our young players. Some of them are French, and Barcola has been decisive and key throughout the season. He’s been heavily criticized, as have the other youngsters, but it’s a process of personal growth. I hope this can continue at PSG for many years to come.
The Bundesliga is a championship that Bayern generally come into with a big points lead. They are even more dominant than Paris Saint-Germain. It’s a powerful league. We’ve seen the level of the other teams, we don’t have a lot of time to watch this championship, but it’s obvious that there are teams competing in the Champions League. There’s a very high level in Europe in many leagues, and we’ve been able to see that throughout the season in the Champions League.
Luis Enrique “I think we’ll be able to make a fair assessment at the end of the competition”.
You’ve played against some South American teams, what do you think?
I think we’ll be able to make a fair assessment at the end of the competition. There are ideas that could have been eliminated in the preliminary phase. We’ll do and congratulate the team that’s champion, that’s all. We’ll see who goes and who goes. We always prepare ourselves for the qualities of our opponents.
We know Bayern Munich well, but everywhere, situations can change and depending on what we find in front of us, we inform our players of the difficulties, the little things we need to know. But we don’t change our methods depending on the opponent.
Perhaps Dembélé will be able to take the field, and you’ve praised his defensive and attacking spirit. How can things improve for a team that has only taken one goal and scored 10 in this competition?
In terms of statistics, it’s going to be difficult to improve. I know that my team defends at a very high level and our aim is always to do well and not to speculate on the result. Tomorrow, we’ll see what happens. It’ll be a different game against opponents used to doing the same thing as us, which means we’ll be more likely to lose the ball, but also more likely to win it back.
It’s going to be a more open game and it’s also going to generate more opportunities than we’re used to. So we’re going to have to adapt to that, and it’s going to be a very different game, but an important one. Still, I think we can improve in the two most important aspects of the game. When you’re used to seeing this kind of performance, what we’re looking for is for it to become a habit and a custom. That’s what we’re aiming for.
Luis Enrique “For me, the best thing for a manager is to adapt”.
If you had the choice when making your team between a player you could teach your system to, or a player who already knows your system who would be a star and could improve your idea of soccer, which direction would you take?
It depends on the team we have. For me, the best thing for a manager is to adapt. We have to try to adapt and play in the best possible way. If you don’t have a big star, you have to develop your own players individually and as a team to try and get the best possible result.
