Paris Saint-Germain beat Brest 7-0 (video highlights PSG/Brest, 10-0 aggregate) this Wednesday at the Parc des Princes as part of the Champions League 2024-2025 return play-offs. After the match, Paris coach Luis Enrique spoke at a press conference. The Spaniard spoke of his team’s broad success and expressed his satisfaction with their progress.
Luis Enrique “I’d like to congratulate the Brest team and their coach Eric Roy.
Are you proud of your team’s performance this evening?
“First of all, I’d like to congratulate the Brest team. They’re always a tough team to play against, and I think they’re one of the best French teams in this competition. I think our side did very well from the start. This kind of game, with the result of the first leg, could have turned into a trap.
I think that the first goal caused a lot of disappointment for Brest. As a result, the second half was easier for us, and all our players respect this team, which is one of the best in France. So I’d like to congratulate the Brest team and their coach Éric Roy.”
Do you have a preference between Barcelona and Liverpool?
“Yes, I prefer the return leg to be played at home. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Liverpool or Barcelona, I like both teams.”
Luis Enrique “If each goal action had been more individualized we would never have scored so many.”
Tonight there are seven goals from seven different strikers, are you satisfied with that?
“It’s something I’ve commented on before, and I was wondering if in the history of the Champions League it’s ever happened that there are seven goals for seven different strikers. And what does that represent? It represents our team and our players.
Today, almost the whole team scored, because when the player with the ball approached the box, he was always looking for a team-mate in a better position than him. If each goal had been more individualized, we’d never have scored so many. I’m delighted and I think it’s the best way to enter the knockout stages. And I congratulate my team for their mentality and all the players who took part in this match.”
Luis Enrique: “It’s simply the mentality I’m looking for”.
Do you see any significant progress in Kvaratskhelia?
“He’s a top player, there’s no doubt about that. Arriving during the winter mercato and finding himself a starter always requires time to adapt and get to know his teammates. But it’s clear that he’s very keen to show what he’s capable of, and to fit in with the team.
When I see him making 80-meter efforts to help his team defend, that’s simply the mentality I’m looking for and that of the PSG strikers.”
Luis Enrique: “Brest really is a top-class team”.
Are you proud that your players showed no mercy until the end of the match?
“When we have supporters like ours, who follow us away, always fill the stadium and never stop being behind the team no matter what the result, I think the greatest sign of respect for our opponent and our supporters is to play the way we did. Brest really are a top team, but we played the same way in both games regardless of the result.”
You’ve always relied on ball retention, how do you work with your players so that they always make the best decision?
“The desire we have with the management and staff is to find players who are naturally attracted to our way of thinking and what we’re going to ask of them. The profile of players I had before coming to Paris was always very good. A lot of very high-level players.
And in the last two years we’ve focused even more on the type and profile of players I’m looking for. And it’s always difficult to find players who can improve our collective because the level is already very high.”
Luis Enrique “I like the mentality of my players and those of the youngsters who are coming through.”
Senny Mayulu scored tonight, in which area could he strengthen to pass a milestone in his young career?
“He’s just starting out, he’s evolving in a particular club, his club. With the staff, we have no problem playing very young players. He’s a player of the future, but he’s already performing well in the present. But I really like his qualities and obviously his mentality. For example, like Gonçalo Ramos, whether he plays 10, 20 or 90 minutes, he’ll always be at 100%, always providing goals or assists.
For me, he can be the man of the match, like Kvara or Vitinha, but with him we’re used to it. I like the mentality of my players and those of the youngsters who are coming through. That’s what I want from my team. To know that I can count on any player at any time.”
Luis Enrique “the first goal extinguished Brest’s hopes.”
During the first fifteen minutes you exchanged a lot, sometimes getting annoyed with Barcola, is it with this kind of details that we get the second half we saw tonight?
“I don’t know, I can get angry depending on what I see. I think Brest could easily have scored early on. Marquinhos saved a ball on the goal line. It could have been 0-1 for Brest and it would have led to a totally different result. It’s obviously difficult to play these kind of games, because we won the first leg 0-3 and everything seems to be over, but it’s not.
As someone with 30 years’ experience in soccer, I know that every game is different. That’s why I don’t allow us to be less than 100%, and if our rivals are better than us, I congratulate them. But I think in the first few minutes I saw things I didn’t like and I let the players know. And from then on we were better and the first goal extinguished Brest’s hopes.”
Luis Enrique “It forced us to be better, prepared us for the knockout matches.”
After the match against Bayern Munich you weren’t sure you’d qualify, today you’re in the last 8, in what aspects has your team improved since then?
“I think it’s best to ask our future opponents, the coaches who analyze PSG, what they think. We had a ranking that was totally unfair in relation to what we were offering. In those first eight games, we should have had at least five points more.
We took the longest and most difficult route, but that’s okay. It forced us to be better, and prepared us for the play-offs. Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, PSV, Manchester City, Arsenal, is it any harder than that? I don’t think it’s possible. We’re prepared for any adversity.
Luis Enrique: “He’s a very important player for us”.
Fabián Ruiz was under threat of suspension, wasn’t that a fear when it came to fielding him?
“Fabian is clearly in a very good moment, he lacked very little to score tonight. But for us he’s a very important player and that’s why I decided to substitute him in the second half, to avoid any suspension.”
