This Wednesday at 7pm (CET) Paris Saint-Germain (1st) faces Nantes (17th) at the Parc des Princes in a rescheduled match from the 26th round of Ligue 1 2025-2026. In a press conference, Nantes coach Vahid Halilhodzic spoke about this match and their Parisian opponent. As a reminder, he is suspended for this match and his assistant Eric Blahic will take his place on the Nantes bench.
Halilhodzic: “You need a lot of luck, both defensively and offensively.”
Matches against Paris are always special. How do you prepare for this particular match?
“We have a pretty good idea of how they’re going to play, even though we’re waiting to see who will actually play. The problem is that they’re under pressure to win because of their loss against Lyon. That will logically provoke a reaction from PSG, and when they want to win, it’s difficult to play against them.
You need a lot of luck, both defensively and offensively, which was the case against Lyon. You have to defend well, covering width, depth, and winning duels. And above all, you mustn’t lose possession quickly.”
Halilhodzic: “There are quite a few things to prepare tactically.”
In a match like this, you might be tempted to strengthen your defense?
“By shifting our positioning, we can close down the spaces on the flanks. In midfield, we also have to contain them because they have three or four players who are on the edge of being offside. Their through balls are very dangerous.” There are quite a few things to prepare tactically.
Then, when we have the ball, we have to play. We have to try things. We mustn’t be afraid to attack. But we mustn’t lose possession because that’s where Paris is most dangerous with their phenomenal speed of passing.
