This Sunday at 8:45 p.m., PSG will travel to Lyon at the end of the 4th day of Ligue 1. Author of its first success, last weekend against Lens (3-1), Paris will want to continue against a Lyon team down since the start of the season (1 draw, 2 defeats). Luis Enrique was at a press conference this Saturday at the Poissy Campus to discuss the meeting but also the transfer window which ended, in France, Friday evening at midnight with the last arrival of Randal Kolo Muani from Frankfurt.
The transfer window ended Friday evening in France, with two signings for PSG, Bradley Barcola and Randal Kolo Muani. Are you satisfied ?
LUIS ENRIQUE. Clearly, I am extremely satisfied. I think the transfer window was exceptional. I thank the president and the sporting director Luis Campos, they were perfect in their role. I couldn’t have dreamed of better, all my requests have been fulfilled, all positions have been doubled. Now is the time for the workforce and the staff to give back the confidence that the club wanted to give them.
What changes the arrival of Kolo Muani for you?
I think we have all observed the level of Randal Kolo Muani at Eintracht Frankfurt and in selection. He can play anywhere on the pitch, whether in nines or as a winger. He can play inside or outside the box. He is a French player and that was one of our requests. We wanted to strengthen this identity of the club.
Is being able to align the attack of the Blues with Dembélé, Kolo Muani and Mbappé an asset for their adaptation and automatisms?
What I have in front of me is an infinity of options. I have young players, with a lot of qualities. Now it’s up to the staff to work on the best combinations by finding the players who get along the best on the pitch, by finding the best complementarities.
How are you going to manage the competition with Gonçalo Ramos who has arrived to play as a starter and who, with the signing of Kolo Muani, may not be in the end?
Not titular, really? Obviously you don’t know me yet. I want at least 20 incumbents, not 12 or 13. Even 22. You will learn with me that the status of incumbent or substitute does not exist.
Why did you choose not to recruit an additional midfielder?
I think I didn’t need it. I have a lot of players in the middle and I’m convinced that’s enough for this season.
How do you plan to use Barcola and will he be in the squad for the trip to Lyon?
Yes, he will be in the group. He’s a player you already know. You saw him with OL and in Espoirs, he is a player capable of dribbling in the corridors, very good without the ball, who can also play as a number 9. He’s a player we like a lot, we really like what he offers, a player with a future and on top of that French.
Can we have an update on the future of Verratti, Draxler, but also a word on the success in terms of sales this summer?
The transfer window will have been a success for purchases and sales of course. It seems to me that we are in the process of creating a project for the future. For Draxler, it’s not a question for me but for the sporting director (Luis Campos). Verratti? What was said between us remains private, especially in terms of the advice I was able to give him.
What type of match should we expect this Sunday in Lyon?
We prepared it like all the others, with great seriousness. My role is to help the team get out of it. OL is a historic Ligue 1 club, with very good coach Laurent Blanc. We are going to play in a very nice stadium, with a great atmosphere. It’s a difficult match for which I’m preparing but we’re ready to try and get the three points.
