Gonçalo Ramos, Paris Saint-Germain’s 23-year-old striker who arrived from Benfica in 2023, is finding it hard to break out of his substitute role with coach Luis Enrique, despite some fine displays. A situation mentioned by the coach yesterday in a press conference, and also by former striker Mevlut Erding (notably with PSG from 2009 to 2012) in L’Equipe on Wednesday.
Erding “He always plays his heart out, even for a few minutes, he’s a real pro”.
“I love this striker, he’s the prototype of the centre-forward of the future: he sees the game, is physically strong, is skilful, clever and has a nose for goal. He reminds me of Pedro Pauleta, only more athletic. He always plays his heart out, even for a few minutes, he’s a real pro.
He’s unlucky to be at PSG, where the competition is very high with top-class players like Ousmane Dembélé, Bradley Barcola and Khvitcha Kvaratskhelia. In another top 8 European team, like Arsenal, he would be a starter in my opinion.”
We can understand Erding’s point of view, as Ramos could probably play more often as a regular at other top European clubs. At PSG, he faces immense competition and a coach with a particular philosophy to which he has to adapt. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
With his impeccable mentality and game intelligence, the Portuguese international can above all take advantage of this situation to improve. He is driven to do even better in order to play more. In particular, he needs to develop his ability to combine and be particularly effective if he is to overtake another striker in the pecking order. While he already has some fine qualities in terms of stalling and finishing, with his young age, this move could really push him towards excellence. We’ve already seen Ousmane Dembélé (27) turn a corner with Luis Enrique. Perhaps it will be the same for Ramos.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
