A spectacular birthday victory. For his 500th with PSG, Marquinhos, who arrived from AS Roma in 2013, had the pleasure of winning a new match with the capital club this Wednesday evening in the Champions League against Tottenham (5-3). Enough to put a smile on his face during a brief visit to a mixed zone.
How did you feel experiencing this 500th here, at the Parc des Princes?
MARQUINHOS. The fans were there with me for my premiere, they are still there today. There were good times and bad times, it’s nice to reach this milestone. I’m really proud, my family is proud, the supporters too. It shows my passion and I think the fans are happy when a player gives everything for this jersey. I wanted to win tonight, I hoped we wouldn’t concede a goal. It wasn’t possible, but we had a good evening nonetheless.
A bit of a crazy evening, isn’t it?
Yes, it’s true. The first half was complicated, they took advantage of a few flaws to score, but our philosophy does not change. It doesn’t matter if we are led, the coach always pushes us to act like this. This is what we did again today, it proves our value.
“A very good match from Ndjantou”
What did you think of Quentin Ndjantou’s match?
He had a very good match. He did what the coach wanted him to do by finding the spaces between the lines. It’s very good for a kid who hasn’t had many matches with us, who is only starting in the Champions League. He showed personality, I’m happy that our training center is starting to get these results. He will become an excellent player I am sure, he must take advantage, he must continue to work quietly. He will still have good matches here.
You are the best attack in the Champions League without Dembélé, Doué… What does that say about your team?
The coach understands that he has a lot of strengths in his game. It doesn’t matter if there are absentees, others can bring to the team. We want to have all the players available, we know that the key moment will arrive, but that does not prevent us from having results today. We manage to win, to perform well, even with absentees.
A word on Vitinha’s remarkable match…
I saw him arrive, I saw him grow, today he is the one who controls our environment, who sets the tempo, who puts the ball forward, to one side then the other. He always gives his all even in training. The coach loves him and sometimes even has to tell him to rest (laughs). He’s a great player, one of the best midfielders in the world. I’m very happy to have him with us.
