Pape Gueye, the 27-year-old Villarreal midfielder—who previously played for Olympique de Marseille (2020–2024)—spoke to L’Équipe in an interview published this Monday. The conversation touched upon this Tuesday evening’s match against Paris Saint-Germain at the Estadio de la Cerámica, part of the fourth matchday of the 2026–2027 Champions League (kick-off at 9:00 PM, CET).
Gueye: “We all started playing football dreaming of matches like these.”
“How do you beat this PSG side?
The coaching staff has been preparing us for this match for a few days now. We’ve watched plenty of video footage to analyze the challenges we’ll face—though we’re already quite familiar with this team, their principles, and the collective style of play the manager has implemented. It’s always motivating to take on the best; we all started playing football dreaming of matches like these.”
Naturally, it’s an exciting encounter—for PSG as well, given that it’s a European fixture with the ultimate goal of going all the way in the competition. For Villarreal, however, it’s an even more special evening, as they face a two-time European champion. There is no doubt about the motivation of the Spanish side or of Gueye himself.
It is up to the Parisians to approach this match correctly, with the utmost concentration and determination. They know their performances are closely studied by their opponents, so they must be prepared to find solutions against any tactical setup. This is a point frequently emphasized by coach Luis Enrique, who always strives for his team to be “unpredictable.”
