Mohamed Sissoko, former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, offered a more measured perspective on the club’s recent struggles in an interview with Le Parisien. While many were quick to portray Paris as a team completely adrift, the former Malian international emphasized that even a highly sought-after squad could experience a dip in form without ceasing to be competitive.
Sissoko: “But I see a team that’s still just as competitive.”
“Have we rediscovered the great PSG?
We hadn’t lost it. Given their exceptional season last year, with many trophies but a very high number of matches and little rest, it’s normal that they’re going through a more difficult period. But I see a team that’s still just as competitive, with spirit and, above all, quality players.”
Sissoko: “They just needed more freshness, and they had it tonight.”
What changed?
The foundation is still the same, nothing has changed. Defensively, they’re very compact, the system is very clear, there’s no difficulty from that point of view. They just needed to regain some freshness to be more decisive and assertive in their pressing and attacking in the final third.
It’s true that when you play matches like the Champions League, against Chelsea, you want to push yourself to the limit. But Luis Enrique doesn’t pick and choose. In his matches, he makes no concessions; he plays every competition to the fullest. He just needed more freshness, and he had it tonight.”
Mohamed Sissoko’s comments have the merit of bringing some order to a debate that has sometimes devolved into a constant trial against PSG. Yes, Paris has gone through a less brilliant phase, yes, some of the criticism was understandable, but some of the analysis also descended into exaggeration, as if a few more difficult weeks suddenly erased the structure, quality, and soul of this team.
Sissoko, for his part, denies nothing and doesn’t dramatize anything: he simply points out that after a grueling season, a drop in freshness could affect pressing, intensity, and composure in the final third. The performance against Chelsea doesn’t prove that everything was wrong yesterday, but it at least forces those who predicted the team’s downfall to admit that they were far too hasty on this one.
