On Saturday, in the final of the Champions League 2024-2025, Paris Saint-Germain will take on Inter Milan at Munich’s Allianz Arena (kick-off 9pm, CET). On the eve of this encounter, Parisian defender and captain Marquinhos (31) answered a number of questions at a press conference.
Marquinhos: “He’s talked to us a lot, he’s prepared us well, he’s presented us with the plans and we’re arriving for this final, ready”.
You’ve lived through a final with PSG and above all a lot of emotions with this club how did Luis Enrique and his staff deal with the emotional aspect?
Good evening everyone. He has a very important role in this team. Since the first day he arrived, he hasn’t just worked on the tactical aspect, not just the physical aspect, but also the mental aspect. Knowing how to manage emotions and match times, and above all how to manage them well so as to take the match where we want to go, where we’re strong, that’s what he’s worked on a lot. That’s what got us here today.
If you look at the games we’ve had, the difficulties we’ve had, we’ve managed to turn things around and that’s also down to all the work he’s done and everything he’s brought us since he arrived. This week, he’s talked to us a lot, he’s prepared us well, he’s presented us with the plans and we’re ready for this final.
We want to win from the very first minute, but we know that anything can happen. We’re ready for that and for anything that can happen.
Marquinhos: “Collectivity first, then individuality”.
What role can Dembélé play in this final?
He’s not just an attacking leader, he’s also a leader in the dressing room. We’ve seen that he’s taken on his role very well this season, in the way he talks and the way he goes about things.
On the pitch, you know what he’s capable of, I see it every day in training and you can see it during the games. I’m very happy to have a player like that, very intelligent, very clever and with a good understanding of space. He’s a very difficult player to defend and we’re going to make the most of him.
It’s not just Ousmane on the pitch, we always say that if the team is strong, we’ll get through it more easily as individuals. That’s what the group experiences every day in matches and training sessions. First the collective, then the individual.
Is this the team you enjoy most at Paris Saint-Germain?
It’s one of the best teams, yes. People make a lot of comparisons with all the years I’ve spent here and the teams I’ve had. But this team takes pleasure every day, every match, the way we help each other, the way we all run together, the way we understand each other on the pitch.
I think that has a lot to do with the team’s results. I’m in love with this team and everything we do on the pitch and for each other. It’s a pleasure to be part of this team.
Marquinhos “We’re prepared to get this far and there’s not much left to do”
How do you approach the time leading up to a final?
It’s different from 2020. Socially, it was already a different time. There was no public and it was a totally different competition.
Personally, there aren’t many secrets as to what makes me feel good before a match: you have to eat well, sleep well and take care of yourself before going to sleep to feel good. I’ll talk to my team-mates about what we can add at the last minute. The details are ready. There’s not much left to do, just enjoy the moment and don’t put too much pressure on yourself.
The best thing is to be well-balanced, not to be motivated to do more or more, because you can go wrong with that. We’re not going to have a player who’s not motivated, everyone’s ready. We’re prepared to get this far, and there’s not much left to do, so we’re going to win this title.
Marquinhos “The club has grown, the coach incredible, the work of the management, the new players, the qualities, I think that’s why we’re in a very good moment today.”
Has the club matured?
Yes, I think the club is learning how to deal with moments like this. The club understood what had to be done, that it had to invest, the new training center, the new people who have arrived to work.
I think a lot of work has been done since I’ve been here, and I can see how the club has wanted to improve and grow. There’s a whole collective effort on the part of the staff that means we’re in the best possible conditions to get this far. We have an exceptional coach who has prepared us well. Even though we’re young, we’re ready for this kind of confrontation. We’re ready to tackle this kind of match.
There’s a combination of things that has got us to this point in the best possible conditions. The club has grown, the coach is incredible, the work of the management, the new players, the qualities, I think that’s why we’re in a very good moment today.
You’ll be playing against two central strikers, so what’s the difference for you?
We’ve worked hard during the week to get to grips with this little detail. That we’re ready for all the defensive stages of this match. We don’t just have a system for defending, we’ve worked hard and improved a lot since the coach arrived. The coach works a lot in relation to the opponent, and even in training, we put ourselves in difficulty to find and know how to defend.
We want to find out what to do when a team comes with two strikers, and when a team comes with just one striker. That’s all we’ve done. We’ve already come up against teams, perhaps not with the same qualities as Inter Milan, but there are teams who have played against us with two strikers, and we know what to do.
There are details we want to work out, but there’s not much we want to change and we want to take the game back to where we’re better. That’s our strength. It’s going to be a great match with two great philosophies. We’re going to do everything we can to make it a positive one for us.
Marquinhos “We’ll be at 100% tomorrow”.
Is Inter a team with a profile you’ve never encountered before?
No, we’ve been through everything this season already. Maybe not exactly with this system, but we’ve had all the difficulties, all the good times, all the difficult times, and I think all that has prepared us for this kind of situation. We know how strong Inter Milan are, and you talk a lot about the way they play, but I’m sure they’re also focused on our mobility and how we play.
That’s soccer and the coach has prepared us very well, but there’s still one more day tomorrow and we’ll be looking at the final details. We’ll be at 100% tomorrow and we’ll be relying much more on our strength. There are things we can do to try and nullify this Inter Milan team.
Marquinhos “Now we have to go and get the trophy and bring it home”
What has Luis Enrique done?
I’ve been here for a while at Paris Saint-Germain and a lot has changed since I arrived. The team has grown a lot, we’ve had some good times and some difficult times. Tomorrow, we have a great opportunity to do something very good for the history of the club and for the history of all the players who are here.
I myself have a second opportunity in a Champions League final, and I don’t want to let it slip through my fingers. I think all the players are ready, and the players are highly motivated to play the best match of their lives and enjoy themselves to the full on the pitch. It’s very difficult, it takes a lot of hard work to get here, and we’ve done everything we can to get here. It’s the best moment of the season and we wanted to be there, so here we are. It’s up to us to do what we can to finish this season on a high and bring this trophy home to Paris and all our supporters.
The club has come a long way and I’m very happy to see how it has grown through all the moments we’ve spent together. I’ve also grown a lot with the club, and that’s why I have so much respect and so much in common with the club. Now we have to go and get the trophy and bring it home.
