Ah, if all Parisians were capable of the same miracles as Keylor Navas … Announced Friday by Thomas Tuchel, for a muscle problem, the goalkeeper was finally starting against Rennes (3-0) the next day. Unfortunately, for PSG, the case of Navas remains well isolated and the dynamic is largely the opposite. Saturday, Thomas Tuchel saw two new players (Gueye and Kehrer) join an already busy infirmary and two others (Kean, victim of a contusion on the knee, and Florenzi, released for muscle fatigue) pass close by.
But how can Paris end up with ten major players on the sidelines? Doctor in physiology, specialized in the mechanism of fatigue and director of research and expertise centers in Aix-en-Provence and Paris (8th arrondissement), Jean-Bernard Fabre comments on the various avenues.
A ghost preparation
When he resumed training on June 22, PSG did everything to be ready for the Final 8 of the Champions League, from August 12 to 23 in Lisbon. At the end of the final, the Parisians immediately went on vacation. Some have contracted the Covid. And on September 10, Ligue 1 already resumed, in Lens. This is why Kylian Mbappé recently indicated that he had the impression of playing his… 60th game of the season.
The specialist’s opinion: “There was a choice between regenerating, so sending the boys on vacation before resuming the season, or saying: they don’t take vacations but we try to cycle to strengthen them. Despite everything, to have a good reading of the thing, you have to compare the situation of PSG with that of other clubs in the Final 8. I’m not sure that Bayern has so many guys on the floor. There are two, three. Not ten. Similar to Leipzig, Lyon or Manchester City. We must therefore ask the right questions. Because there, they’ve had a lot of injuries for two years. There is a fundamental problem. Maybe we should look at the training grounds? There was a reorganization of the medical staff in June. But I have the feeling that they haven’t found the right way to work yet. “
An unprecedented context
Just after Thilo Kehrer’s injury on Saturday evening, Eric Carrière, the Canal + consultant, spoke of the mental aspect linked to the fear of being injured as well as to the health context. Is the current climate causing physical fragility?
The specialist’s opinion: “The period is much more favorable for a grain of sand to become a dune. We can add a factor that leads to injuries: weariness. Because, indeed, the season is long and will be again. Maybe we should also ask ourselves about sleep. Even though soccer players are in a golden bubble, it’s still a scary time. Like the population at large, they probably sleep less well at night. They have fewer outside distractions. And maybe they are more likely to think. However, the first point to recover well and be in good shape is to sleep! You can do whatever you want on the side, if you don’t sleep well… Afterwards, the question is: why would players from Paris be more sensitive to this than other players from France? There is bound to be something that must squeak in the preparation and the organization. “
Choices that challenge
Thomas Tuchel’s angry remarks after the victory against Rennes left their mark: “We are playing with Thilo Kehrer who is not ready to play, nor Leo Paredes. We’re taking a risk with Ander Herrera. It is not normal that we take this risk. Why then did the coach not trust Dagba, Rafinha or youngsters like Ruiz in order to avoid any further glitches? Result: Kehrer relapsed. Gueye too.
The specialist’s opinion: “Tuchel cannot say that he does not have enough squad to play in Ligue 1. The thing is, maybe he should have used the first few months to basically make two teams. Because he didn’t find out the schedule at the last moment. He knew how it was going to be. However, the management of the rates of fatigue and peaks of form of the players, you hold them above all on the calendar, after you make choices. If he knows his guys are burnt, it shouldn’t become an excuse. He still has the chance to have two teams! In Ligue 1, you can afford to play with the B team or with young people. He’s not going to be able to cry all year round and say: The schedule is tough. Otherwise, you should not be a coach at PSG, which plays on all fronts. “
