This Saturday at 5pm (broadcast on beIN SPORTS), Paris Saint-Germain (1st) take on Rennes (11th) at Roazhon Park as part of the 25th day of Ligue 1 2024-2025. In a press conference, Rennes coach Habib Beye spoke about the match and his team’s opponents.
Beye “Football can be cruel, but PSG’s performance was a success”.
“What did you think of PSG’s performance against Liverpool on Wednesday night (0-1) ?
Soccer can sometimes be cruel, because PSG’s performance was perfect. It was a fantastic match in terms of content, and collectively it was quite impressive. It comes down to details, Liverpool had little control and that’s cruel for Paris.
The Parisians may well be saving their strength in Rennes before the return leg, does that change anything for you ?
No, we’re preparing for it with the logic of having a very competitive team, and when that team is reshuffled, it’s always ultra-competitive, and it’ll have the will to win, just like us.
For Rennes, it’s sure to be an interesting challenge. That said, PSG, who are preparing an incredible trip to Anfield for the second leg of their Champions League tie, may be less focused for this match. But Beye knows that PSG never rest on their laurels, and he would be wrong to think that Luis Enrique’s team will give up on this match. There may be a reshuffled team, but they’ll be a tough nut to crack.
Beye “He’s one of those inspirational coaches who’s mastered everything”.
How do you perceive Luis Enrique ?
He’s someone who masters many aspects of the game, who wants his team to be liquid, unpredictable and capable of playing in a variety of formations, and that’s a huge strength. On Wednesday, PSG were sovereign in everything they put forward for 95 minutes, and he’s one of those inspirational coaches who masters everything.
How do you approach such a dominant PSG ?
It’s a question of trying to master the details of the match. We’re going to be in trouble, and we’re also working to make things difficult for them. We know what kind of team PSG are, and from that point onwards, we can either give in or go into the match with our heads held high, our ambitions and our determination to stand firm. We’ve been working on our use of the ball, knowing that we’ll have less of it, and on the aspect of having to play one-on-ones. It’s not a bonus match, it’s not “we’ve got nothing to lose”. We’ll have a 95-minute challenge on our hands, a big, exciting challenge. It’s a match we’ve got to win, and we’ve got to give ourselves the means to do it, with personality and players who believe in themselves.
Beye makes his debut in the big time of club soccer. Although his past experiences should not be put aside, he has now been with a club that has had to grow for years. He often gave advice here and there when he was a commentator. Now he’s on the other side, he’ll have to take responsibility and he’ll be under pressure. If he wins, he passes a milestone, if he loses, Rennes continues its average season. This match will be a major issue for him and the Breton club, whereas for PSG it’s important above all because Luis Enrique doesn’t want to drop any match.
Beye: “He has innate qualities which he puts to good use for the team”.
What’s your impression of Désiré Doué, back on Saturday where he was trained ?
He’s growing in stature, getting more playing time and developing very, very quickly. He has innate qualities that he puts to good use for the team.
There are a lot of PSG players who are going to pose problems for Rennes, and Doué is obviously one of them. The challenge for Beye and his men is to come out on top against an invincible PSG in France. But as Liverpool showed when they were clearly outplayed and outplayed, it doesn’t take much for things to go wrong, and PSG now know more than anyone that dominating is not winning. There is therefore room for Rennes to pull off a feat and put an end to Paris’s invincibility.
