Ahead of Tuesday night’s Champions League round of 16 second leg between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, Le Parisien looked at PSG’s image in England. James Gheerbrant, a journalist for The Times, highlighted a particularly striking shift.
“People are no longer just reluctantly respecting PSG.”
“From an English fan’s perspective, Real Madrid remains the most formidable opponent. But PSG is considered a formidable force, probably ranking alongside Bayern Munich and Barcelona in terms of the fear it inspires. Today, people are no longer just reluctantly respecting PSG; they admire what it is building.”
There’s no reason to be upset that they haven’t yet reached the level of fear Real Madrid inspires in England; they are a legendary club, the one with the most Champions League titles. And they’ve eliminated numerous English clubs in recent years, with a 3-0 victory to defend tonight against Manchester City. We prefer to focus on the journey PSG has undertaken, now on par with European giants.
While they were once seen as a wealthy club that couldn’t build a team, they still needed to be wary, given the talent of some of their players, but the perception in England wasn’t exactly positive. With a project that now prioritizes teamwork, demonstrating greater solidity and consistency while developing young talent, Paris has managed to win over the English. Naturally, the victories against several clubs last year (Manchester City, Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Arsenal) before winning the Champions League certainly helped.
They’ll need to confirm this tonight, even though England is already wary. And they’ll even respect what has been put in place. An interesting point, especially when we recall recent comments on the strategy of developing image and revenue across the Channel.
