Undefeated since the start of the season, Paris were surprised at Lens (3-1) and Rennes (2-0) in January. The demolition of the Pays de Cassel did not erase the difficulties perceived during the last meetings, Christophe Galtier confided to having worked on the offensive animation of his team. Fortunately for PSG, he is not the only European technician to have a job.
The leaders have not all digested the World Cup. Large cars have necessarily been more impacted by the World Cup. Most of their players lost fuel in Qatar but this potential physical or psychological cost does not explain everything. Barça provided 17 players to the selections involved and still stole the La Liga lead from Real and dominated their rival in the Spanish Super Cup final.
Only, the Blaugrana do not appear in the table of the knockout stages of the Champions League. Unlike PSG, opposed to a purring Bayern Munich. “It’s high time we changed gears,” warned Hasan Salihamidzic, Bavarian sports director, after the draw against Cologne (1-1). While the Bundesliga resumed late, on January 20 with Leipzig-Bayern (1-1), the restart of the championship leader is sluggish.
Milan have not won for 5 games
In Bavaria, two rank draws are almost synonymous with a crisis. To the results, is added a lack of inspiration and precision with the ball and a disorganized block at the loss of the leather. If Yann Sommer, the replacement for Manuel Neuer, has integrated well, Bayern have ousted their goalkeeper coach. The second period against Cologne and the cannon shot of Joshua Kimmich nevertheless left a positive taste. A flavor that Milan supporters risk forgetting.
The post-World Cup turn was badly negotiated by AC Milan, crushed by Lazio (4-0) in Serie A after a painful defeat against Inter (3-0) in the Italian Supercup. The Rossoneri have not won for five games and some of his weapons are rusty, less than three weeks from the reception of Tottenham. Mike Maignan is supposed to return for the second part of February, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is absent and Theo Hernandez feels the backlash of the World Cup. The good news ? Spurs have lost three of their six league games since the international break.
Overthrown by Manchester City (4-2), outclassed by Arsenal (2-0), Antonio Conte’s men are unable to dominate the teams of their rank, despite their fifth place. The technician organized a meeting with his players to draw a line under the first part of the season and stimulate a new dynamic. As in Milan, Spurs’ summer signings did not significantly advance the team.
The transfer window of the Blues, the fatigue of the Reds
It is also through the transfer window that Chelsea tries to generate the shock. The Blues are stuck in tenth place in the Premier League, scuttled by the injuries of Wesley Fofana, Reece James or N’Golo Kanté. The arrivals of Mykhaïlo Mudryk, Joao Felix and Benoît Badiashile have increased the total of 450 million euros spent this season by 150 million euros. Against Liverpool (0-0), the Ukrainian showed that he did not need a functional collective around him to place a few flashes.
Author of prowess at the head of more modest teams, Graham Potter has taken a shot of old since his arrival at Stamford Bridge in September. Thomas Tuchel’s replacement failed to infuse his formula, made of short ball outings and harmonious movements between interchangeable players, to the Chelsea collective. It’s not easy to lead a locker room of stars, but Potter has only three weeks before the trip to Dortmund, winner of his two resumption matches.
The weakness of some big players is therefore partly explained by transfer windows which have not yet borne fruit. In Liverpool, the absence of rookies in midfield penalized a team wrung out by a season that ended in two cup finals and another in the Champions League. Mohammed Salah is not playing at his level of last year, the pressing is harmless, the midfield is permeable and the defensive line is too exposed.
Guardiola: ‘I don’t care about the Premier League’
This season, the best Liverpuldian player is called Alisson. The Brazilian goalkeeper could not prevent the three goals conceded at Brentford (3-1) and Brighton (3-0). “I can’t remember a worse match, reacted Jürgen Klopp, after this defeat against the Seagulls. And I’m talking about my whole career, not just Liverpool. “The German coach is struggling to find an eleven-type, he who has a seventh season with the Reds. In the Champions League, the ninth in the Premier League still beat Naples (2-0) but has an appointment with Real Madrid, his pet peeve since a first defeat in the final, in 2018.
Finally, in Manchester City, the situation is much less worrying but Pep Guardiola does not manage to harmonize his collective as usual. Worse, the Skyblues are relegated to five lengths of Arsenal, despite a match more. “I don’t care about the Premier League or the Carabao Cup, we can’t win them,” said Pep Guardiola after the defeat against Manchester United (2-1). For the trip to Leipzig on February 22, the Spaniard can however count on his miracle card, not damaged by the Qatari sun: Erling Haaland.
