Reims-PSG (0-3): “I’m not really happy with him”, Enrique tickles Mbappé despite his hat-trick

A hat-trick from Kylian Mbappé, and an important victory in Reims (0-3) to take the lead in the championship. Here is the results of the day for Paris Saint-Germain. But despite the three new goals scored by the top scorer in Ligue 1, Luis Enrique was not fully satisfied with the French striker’s performance.

“I’m not really happy with Kylian (Mbappé) today. I have nothing to say about the goals. But I think he can help the team more, in a different way, he assured Prime Video after the meeting. Kylian is one of the best in the world. But we need more. We want him to do more. I’m going to talk to him about it first, and then I won’t tell you what I told him because it’s private.”

The Spanish PSG coach then clarified his thoughts at a press conference, finding things to complain about in the more general performance of his team, shaken up by a Reims team full of desire.

What do you remember from Kylian Mbappé’s performance this Saturday evening, his hat-trick and his complicated first 45 minutes?

LUIS ENRIQUE. I think the match was complicated, the match was very balanced, Reims generated a lot of chances, they were really in it until the 90th minute. Concerning Kylian, I have nothing to add on these goals. We know his value, we know what he does, I always ask him for more, I know he can do better. He is a top player at world level. But he still has room for improvement, I ask him to progress and not rest on his laurels.

“He must not rest on his laurels and always seek to progress”

What exactly do you expect in terms of Kylian’s progress?

I think it’s fairer that I tell Kylian before the press the areas where he needs to progress. He scored three goals, if anyone didn’t see the match you might think it was a great match. But there are points where he can improve like other players. He’s the one who knows it. As I said, he must not rest on his laurels and always seek to progress.

A word on the performance of Gianluigi Donnarumma who was imperial in the goal?

He’s an impressive player! I suffered against him when he was my opponent, now I enjoy being his coach. He is someone who is always ready for training, he is focused, it is difficult to score him goals. It was a difficult week emotionally after the Milan match. He is a very high level player, I am very happy to have him with us.

“Kang-In Lee is an exceptional player”

Can you explain the early exit of Gonçalo Ramos?

I could have changed any striker, Dembélé was perhaps better at certain moments. Gonçalo brings us technical capacity, work, continuity, he generates a lot of opportunities. It could have been a player other than him coming out.

What lessons do you draw from this meeting?

I think the match was really difficult from the first to the last minute, Reims is a tough opponent to face. There are a lot of players who had a very good match: Soler was very strong, Dembélé also in the overflows, Lee who didn’t lose the ball, Mukiele and the defenders had a great match, Gigio was fantastic. To win, you had to suffer, we knew that and the team did it: they managed to grow throughout the match.

Is Kang-in Lee a valuable asset?

He is an exceptional player, he surprises me too, whether in matches or in training. He almost never loses the ball. Facing an aggressive Reims team, we must not lose the ball, we must manage to hold it. It’s fortunate to have so many players available in our squad.