On Tuesday, October 28, the French press (on the sports side) focused on Paris Saint-Germain’s choice of replacement for Achraf Hakimi (26-year-old right back), who is resting for Wednesday’s match against Lorient (kickoff at 7 p.m., CET) as part of the 10th matchday of Ligue 1 2025-2026. There is also the possible offside revolution, spearheaded by Arsène Wenger, former Arsenal coach and now director of football development at FIFA.
Le Parisien –
L’Equipe –
As for Hakimi, coach Luis Enrique has made it clear that signing another specialist would be difficult, as it would be sad for him to play little, given that the Moroccan international is the best in his position and capable of playing very often. But he needs to be replaced sometimes, and PSG has options. Marquinhos (31-year-old center back) is one of them. Warren Zaïre-Emery (19-year-old midfielder) is another, as are João Neves (21-year-old midfielder) and Senny Mayulu (19-year-old midfielder).
This Wednesday could be complicated for Neves, who is still uncertain at the moment and will most likely not start after several weeks of absence. Zaïre-Emery could play, but it is surprising that the sports newspaper is not giving more credence to the Mayulu option. This was the choice recently when Mayulu and Zaïre-Emery were on the field. This could still change, and perhaps Mayulu will be rested. In any case, there is no need to panic; coach Luis Enrique knows what he is doing.
As for offside, we can understand the temptation. However, we are far from convinced. There is the strange idea (which is even the angle taken by the article in Le Parisien) that this would reduce the number of goals disallowed by a few millimeters. But this will inevitably continue; it will simply be behind the attacker rather than in front of them that the line will be placed. The change is also presented as an asset for spectacular football. However, this advantage for attackers seems to be an invitation to play a low defense, leaving even less space. Perhaps we are wrong; football can be surprising.
