For Danny Taylor, 21-year-old Paris Saint-Germain forward Désiré Doué has reached a new level. Speaking to L’Équipe, the journalist from The Athletic identifies him as a future superstar, explaining how his creative, fast-paced, and spirited style of play embodies what he sees as the core identity of PSG’s football.
Taylor: “He sows chaos while keeping a smile on his face”
“His recent performances in the Champions League have propelled him into the category of future superstars. After the match against Liverpool last season, my colleague Oliver Kay remarked that Doué perfectly embodies the PSG philosophy: creative, fluid, possession-based football, played at high speed, with passion and enthusiasm. Much like ‘Kvara’ [Khvicha Kvaratskhelia], he sows chaos while keeping a smile on his face.”
Possession as a springboard for the unexpected
The notion of “chaos” effectively captures the essence of this perspective. Maintaining possession allows a team to organize its positioning, draw out the opposition, and then set the stage for a sudden breakthrough. In Taylor’s assessment, Doué provides precisely the ability to derail an opponent’s defensive plan. His creativity gives purpose to the team’s ball circulation—creating imbalances, injecting pace, and making the play less predictable.
Individual flair within a collective framework
This also serves as a compliment to the project at PSG. Taylor describes a player whose personality fits seamlessly into a shared style of play. For PSG, the challenge lies in preserving this freedom while maintaining the tactical connections that make it effective. The mention of a “smile” adds another dimension: it suggests that boldness still has a place, even within a highly demanding brand of football. While the label of “future superstar” remains a projection, the combination of enjoyment and ambition lends real weight to this assessment.
