On Saturday, aspart of Matchday 11 of Ligue 1 2024-2025, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will take on Angers (15th) at the Stade Raymond Kopa (kick-off 9pm, broadcast on DAZN). On the eve of the match, Paris coach Luis Enrique answered a number of questions at a press conference.
Luis Enrique “He needs to have the right mentality to help the team.”
Is it a good thing or a bad thing to start tomorrow after the defeat?
Without a doubt, it’s good. I think it’s positive to be able to compete again, to have difficulties again. Top-level players are used to good and bad results.
How would you assess Doué’s first few months? Is he still learning?
I think they’ve been very good. There’s no mathematical rule in soccer. Recruits don’t adapt in the same way. Everyone is different. Most adapt easily, but it’s slower for some. Doué is a great player for the future. He needs to have the right mentality to help the team.
Luis Enrique “We’ll try to solve this problem with our resources.”
Are you keen to recruit a striker at the mercato?
I’ve never said that. I never complain about players I don’t have, injuries or anything else. I don’t have a shortage of players. With the new mercato coming up, it’s an opportunity to say that there are players we haven’t been able to bring in because clubs have closed the door.
Some wanted to come, but the prices were exorbitant. I’m very satisfied with the players we have. Next, we’re going to try and develop the team to solve our problems. We lack efficiency, that’s true. Our aim is to unlock that. You can’t just push a button; that would be too easy in sport. But not everything depends on one player or one injured player. It’s all different.
We’re going to improve. There’s a blockage, because we see a difference between the championship and the Champions League. It’s a difficult competition, but we’re going to find solutions. It’s a delicate situation, but we have to accept it. We’re going to try to overcome this problem with our resources.
Luis Enrique “We don’t need any more blockages.”
How do you resolve doubts?
I’d say an excess of responsibility, without being 100% sure. But when I see what’s going on, it seems that the Champions League is a different world. But you can’t win it with added pressure. That’s not the way to look at this competition. We don’t need any extra blockages.
But we’re going to face up to that, and we’re going to look at things with optimism. I hope we can improve our statistics in the next match.
How would you sum up your European experience with PSG, with 6 wins in 16 games?
It all depends on what you want to take away from it, that’s typical. We played in the group of death, in very difficult matches. That’s still the case this season. We played the runner-up last year. I accept that these are statistics. But you can also point out the positive statistics. I accept that.
Luis Enrique “What I consider more opportune will not be influenced by the outside.”
What do you expect from the player who plays as a 9 in your team?
What we all expect. I could defend the idea of having a false 9, I could tell you what it brings to have a 9. But those are my decisions. I look for what’s best for my team. What I think is best won’t be influenced by the outside world. I hear criticism, especially for the 9 when he doesn’t score, and we forget to congratulate the false 9 when we do score.
I do things according to the team, what we want to do and what I consider important. A coach puts the players he considers the best on the pitch. After that, they may or may not be considered good. I accept that.
Luis Enrique “We need to overcome this, with confidence and clear situations, a collective mentality.”
What’s the players’ state of mind? And yours?
After a match like Wednesday, I’ve been through others, so it’s difficult to talk about it and analyze it. Because emotions take over everything, and the result means you can’t see anything positive. Ideally, there’d be no press conference. Except for the show.
As for me, I’m feeling fine, perfectly fine. It’s in my genes to be competitive and to strive to improve. We know there’s a blockage in the finishing, we know that. It’s a general problem for the whole team, all the players who get close to the surface. We need to overcome that, with confidence and clear situations, a collective mentality.
I’m optimistic, it’s a medium/long-term project. There will be ups and downs. We’re doing well in the league, but it’s harder in the Champions League. We’ll be up against title contenders, so we’ll have to rise to the challenge.
How can we overcome the stalemate?
These are dynamics in soccer. Everyone wants to do a bit more when there’s confidence, but when it becomes negative, you go downhill and it can get worse.
We’re trying to see what we can do on the pitch to overcome that. But you can’t just push a button. There are resources to help the players, and that’s my job.
Luis Enrique “The finishing is lacking, that’s for sure. But you have to look at the positive.”
Is it a lack of passing ability in midfield, a confidence issue, or an instruction to follow?
It’s the opposite, the midfielders have an obligation to attack, score and pass. Our PSG is all about attacking. Our figures in the Champions League are impressive in terms of creation, and we concede very few shots. We’re lacking in finishing, that’s for sure. But you have to look at the positives. My players wanted to win the match. Maybe we need to be calmer. It’s not a question of one or two players.
Are you working on finishing in training? How do you do that?
It’s a very clear situation. You have to analyze the videos to see what you need to improve in terms of decision-making. Every team works on finishing, every week, just like every other team.
But I repeat, you can’t concentrate on just one thing. Otherwise, it becomes an obsession. You have to be calm and prepare for the match in the best possible way. There are always missed opportunities in soccer, even if not as many as we’ve had recently. My team will improve, as we’ve seen over the last few months.
Luis Enrique: “Everyone has responsibilities.
Vitinha has been less decisive this season, is that a particular instruction?
It’s the same answer as for your colleague. All players have obligations. It’s a problem we have to solve as a team. It’s not a question of position. Everyone has the same job, with mobility, and you need 4-5 players who can get into the box.
We’re one of the teams with the most players in the box. The instructions are clear, the structure is there. Everyone has responsibilities. But it’s part of soccer to have low moments. But there are no instructions not to go into the box, not to shoot. But that’s soccer, it’s part of development.
Luis Enrique “It’ll be against a highly motivated opponent who hasn’t lost in 4 games. It’s going to be tough.”
How do you approach the 4 Champions League finals?
The most important match is tomorrow. We have to show what we can do. As a team, we have to solve the team problem, even though in Ligue 1 we don’t have this problem, there’s no added pressure.
Tomorrow, we’re going to rotate the team after just a few days’ rest. We want to play a good collective game, solve our problems and win. It’ll be against a highly motivated opponent who hasn’t lost in 4 games. It’s going to be tough.
Can you tell us more about Angers?
They’re a team who have shown that they know how to defend close to their goal and how to use their forwards to create space. They’re a team that causes problems. It’s going to be a tough trip. We want to give a good account of ourselves, and that will help us strengthen for the situation. There will be changes, and I need all the players ready.
