César Azpilicueta (34, Atlético Madrid defender) spoke to L’Équipe about recent Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain. In this interview, he looks back at PSG’s transformation under Luis Enrique (54), and analyzes the keys to this unexpected success.
Azpilicueta “Having a tough schedule in the first round helped them”.
“You start against PSG. When you played and beat them in the autumn, could you imagine them lifting the cup six months later ?
In a competition like the Champions League, PSG are always among the title contenders. But the truth is that after their first matches in the league phase, and given their ranking at the time, few people saw them as favourites.
But they showed that to win the C1 you don’t have to be at your best at the start, but at the end, as in the case of the final, which they won by a very narrow 5-0 scoreline against Inter Milan. Having a tough schedule in the first round was useful for them, and helped them to build up their confidence as they went along.
Azpilicueta “In fact, they live with the ball, it’s his way of seeing soccer”.
What do you think of this team?
It’s a team with some fine players. From day one, we could see the game plan and the team Luis Enrique wanted to build. It’s a team that wants to play the leading role, they want to get the ball back as quickly as possible.
In fact, they live with the ball, that’s the way he sees soccer. They force you to stay super-concentrated, looking for the little moment when you leave a small opening to hurt yourself.
Azpilicueta “They’ve taken on the whole Premier League and they’ve always managed to find the key”
Were you surprised to see how they got the better of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City?
No, I wasn’t. I know Luis Enrique, I know how he works. He always works the same way. They’ve had a lot of talented players in recent years, but this team has a lot of youth, while already having real experience at the top level.
The win over Liverpool, for example, which was very close, was very useful and formative for the future. They’re a different team, they’ve played the whole Premier League and they’ve always managed to find the key.”
Paris Saint-Germain’s progress in the Champions League 2024-2025 symbolizes the high standards and vision of Luis Enrique, whose methodical work has been instrumental in transforming the Parisian team. Since his arrival, the Spanish coach has imposed an identifiable style, based on possession and intensity, demanding total involvement from his players in pressing and high-level recovery.
This style of play, visible even in the first few matches of the group phase when results were slow in coming, enabled PSG to lay solid foundations: despite the doubts on the outside, the content on offer was already coherent and hopeful.
Luis Enrique has imposed a constant tactical challenge on every opponent, forcing coaches in the Premier League and elsewhere to adapt to an unpredictable team capable of changing pace and alternating circuits of play. His ability to create a collective dynamic, in which every player – from the most experienced to the most talented youngster – finds his place, has been hailed by his peers and the international press.
The technician never deviated from his philosophy, even when the going got tough: he stayed focused on the game, convinced that collective mastery would eventually pay off. This in-depth approach, rather than immediate results, enabled PSG to overcome every European hurdle, imposing a new tactical conundrum on their opponents at every turn, right up to the final consecration.
