How Paris Saint-Germain Shed Its Champions League Stress
With renewed focus on young, talented players who want to be at the club and have something to prove, PSG is closer to winning the Champions League.
I’ve always said that managing Paris Saint-Germain is the most challenging job in football. In the past, not only did the manager sometimes take a backseat to the wishes of superstar players, but the football community generally dismissed any accomplishments in Ligue 1, and all focus was on how far the team went in the UEFA Champions League.
Imagine that pressure. A manager could go undefeated in Ligue 1, win the title and the Coupe de France, and play incredible football, but a bad call or bad break in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and your season is a failure. That was the reality for many PSG managers, from Laurent Blanc to Christophe Galtier.
That has seemingly changed under Luis Enrique, who is traversing his first season in the French capital. After a summer transfer window that saw PSG focus on talented youth instead of aging, expensive superstars, PSG finds itself at the top of Ligue 1, in the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France, and in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after defeating Real Sociedad 4-1 on aggregate. More importantly, there’s a significant lack of pressure on the club compared to previous seasons.
When the Champions League group stage draw was completed, some predicted PSG would not even qualify for the knockout stage. With Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. in the squad the past two seasons, PSG couldn’t get past the Round of 16. With those two recognizable names playing elsewhere now and PSG drawn against Borussia Dortmund, AC Milan, and Newcastle United FC in the group stage this season, it wasn’t that far-fetched to think PSG would fall well short of their previous accomplishments.
Messi and Neymar couldn’t propel PSG to a Coupe de France title the past two seasons, so winning that competition wasn’t a given either. Most assumed PSG would win Ligue 1 given the quality in the club, which still includes Kylian Mbappé, but with a young squad, first-year manager, and a decrease in star power, this was supposed to be a down season for Les Parisiens.
There’s no question that without Messi and Neymar in the squad, PSG is actually a better, more balanced team. There’s a cohesion to how they play, and there appears to be full buy-in to what Luis Enrique is teaching.
Then comes the stress part of all this. Messi and Neymar attract media coverage, scrutiny, and expectations like no other footballers. Maybe it’s unfair, but that’s the truth considering what those players have already accomplished in their careers. When those players headed for the exit, they took much of the unfair expectations and scrutiny placed on the club with them. When Mbappé leaves for Real Madrid this summer, the final weight will be lifted from PSG’s shoulders, and they can construct a Champions League contender almost in seclusion.
Without superstars in the squad, casual football fans and journalists/pundits will have little reason to watch PSG in the coming seasons. They won’t see Warren Zaïre-Emery, Lucas Beraldo, Vitinha, Bradley Barcola, Gonçalo Ramos, Nuno Mendes, and others continue developing in Ligue 1. No one will think of PSG as a team that could win the Champions League, which will only benefit PSG.
After PSG’s win over Real Sociedad to secure qualification for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said:
“[It is a qualification] rich in lessons and promise for the future. There is no pressure on you. You should just continue having fun, listen to the coach, and maintain this collective state of mind.”
It’s taken us a while to get to this point, but PSG finally has the right mindset to go with their financial advantages, and with continued investment in young players who want to be at PSG and have something to prove, the Champions League trophy is closer than it ever has been before.