This Wednesday at 7 p.m. (CET), Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Lorient (16th) at the Stade du Moustoir in the 10th round of Ligue 1 2025-2026. At a press conference, Lorient coach Olivier Pantaloni spoke about the match and the Parisian opponent, sharing his expectations, hopes and, inevitably, a certain amount of apprehension about facing PSG.
Pantaloni: “If we can manage to hold them off, that will be a good thing.”
“Do you really believe in the feat?
Today, if someone tells me we can hold PSG, I believe it. But we know we’re facing the best team in Europe. We know it’s a very difficult challenge. Nevertheless, if we go into it with confidence and the will to succeed, maybe we’ll manage to hold them off. Pulling off a feat would be fabulous for us, but if we can just hold them off, that will be a good thing.
Pantaloni “Very few teams can say they can cause PSG problems.”
(…) We know we have to be extremely precise, as efficient, rigorous, and accurate as possible. It’s a game where we’ll have to be surgical in everything we do to be able to compete.
(…) They’re a team with an incredible mindset right now, and their confidence is linked to what they produce on the pitch. Very few teams can say they can cause PSG problems. Nevertheless, we’re going to try to cause them problems.
Pantaloni: “We have to come out of this match feeling proud.”
What can you say to your players before facing a team like this?
They mustn’t feel intimidated. They need to be aware that this is a huge task. But if we lose, we won’t be the first to do so. I hope that we won’t have anything to be ashamed of in terms of the players’ performance.
We have to come out of this match proud. That pride comes from having given everything on the pitch to try to get a result. Even if we don’t get the result, we’ll still have that pride. We’ll have seen a team that fought to the end with everything it had. We have more to gain than to lose,” according to comments reported by Ouest-France.
Pantaloni cannot announce that his team is going into the match to lose. That would go down very badly and would not lead to anything anyway. You have to have hope, believe in a special match, and give it your all. That way, at least you can avoid regrets and have the best possible chance of taking advantage of any poor form on PSG’s part.
There is also the famous “pride” mentioned by Pantaloni. The goal is to at least feel like you’ve done your best, regardless of the result. That goes hand in hand with effort, solidarity and, perhaps, a little daring in the game. It remains to be seen, as tactics against PSG are difficult to implement given that coach Luis Enrique’s team seems to be able to adapt to anything.
It hasn’t been emphasized yet, but everyone has seen recently that stopping Paris is a big challenge. Especially since the squad has been regaining strength lately and will be able to field a very competitive team while managing the players’ fitness. PSG does not have a lead in Ligue 1, so they should come with a certain determination.
It will be difficult for Lorient to hold on, but Pantaloni and his players will do their utmost to achieve a feat that would do them a world of good, both in terms of the standings and morale. It’s up to the Parisians to approach the match well in order to avoid any unpleasant surprises.
