European title holders, the Parisians hoped to avoid the trap of the play-offs but missed the mark this Wednesday at the Parc des Princes against Newcastle (1-1). Although well into its “final” of the 8th day of the league phase, PSG quickly took the advantage thanks to Vitinha before falling back into its failings, unable to kill the match and brittle in key moments. The English equalizer just before the break acted as a brutal reminder of their current limits, and the second half, more suffered than controlled, only confirmed the doubts. This draw, almost fortunate given the last English chances, was enough to eject Paris from the top 8, condemning the European champion to go through the play-offs, like last season, to continue its continental adventure. “A match with a very good first half. We started positively, we missed a penalty, but we had opportunities to score goals. At the end of the first half the goal hurt and we missed chances in the second half, but it was difficult because physically they are very strong. We deserved to win, that’s my opinion“, declared Luis Enrique at a press conference.
An inevitably disappointing situation for a club which was aiming for direct qualification, especially since uncertainty now hangs over the identity of its future opponent, Monaco or Qarabag emerging as the two possible options according to the latest adjustments to the ranking. The draw, scheduled for this Friday, will be carefully scrutinized by a PSG aware of having lost the right to make mistakes. This passage through the dams sounds like a serious warning for Luis Enrique’s men, still too irregular on both surfaces and far from the confidence expected of a title holder. As they enter a decisive phase, Paris knows that the slightest relaxation could be fatal, the Champions League does not long forgive those who are slow to rise to the height of their ambitions.
The faults are pointed out
At a press conference, Luis Enrique tried to calm things down, while taking responsibility for his team’s current shortcomings after this frustrating draw against Newcastle and this exit from the top 8. The Spanish technician insisted on the competitiveness of his players and the need to place Parisian performances in their European context, with the approach of play-offs which he knows are perilous. “Can we play better? Yes, it’s clear. Better results? That’s clear too. But by analyzing our matches, we are there, we are ready, we will see who we are going to play against (Monaco or Qarabag, editor’s note). I am very demanding of the team, we can improve, but we have to see the quality of our opponents. The positive thing is that when you always play against top teams, you are ready for the play-offs, the next matches if you deserve to advance. If we talk about the last two, today we deserved to win. In Lisbon, it was very undeserved“. With a large list of injured players this season, some managers are struggling to find regularity, but like last year, the play-offs can be useful to launch a good series.
The Parisian coach also returned to the scenario of the match, marked by a missed penalty and a clear decline after the break. Aware of the disappointment, he acknowledged a drop in performance in the second half, while recalling that the Champions League never leaves room for error. “I have to wait for the play-offs to finish. That’s how football is. Today it’s a shame because I think the team deserved more. We missed a penalty, we missed opportunities. And when we scored, it hurt. We were a little less good in the second half. But that’s how it is. We know the play-offs and it will be difficult because it’s the Champions League. We will try to be ready.» As for the locker room too, this little disappointment did not fail to make Joao Neves react, questioned in the mixed zone after the meeting: “it’s not a disappointment. We are sad about the draw and having to play two more matches but we can use this to improve. Last season, we played these two matches and it wasn’t a problem. I think we had a great match, we played very well. In the end, it’s a draw but if we focus on what we did with the ball, like in Lisbon, we played well. Unfortunately, we drew».
Starting to everyone’s surprise against the Magpies, Matvey Safonov did not mince his words. “It’s true that it was our goal to finish in the top 8. It’s football and it’s not every day that we achieve our goal. I think it’s not important to explain it, we trust our team, we show the best in all training, it’s something specific to our team“. Same story with Vitinha: “It’s difficult because we did everything to win and finish top 8. Unfortunately, we see that in a match where we controlled, we have a lot of opportunities to win. We’ll see who we end up with. You don’t have to be choosy. It’s a result we don’t want, we always want victory. You have to see the content. We had a great match against a very difficult, very physical team. We wasted too many chances to score and win“. With lucidity, the Parisians are ready to go back to war, like last season, via the roadblocks.
Pub. the
– UPDATE
