Parisian coach Luis Enrique spoke at a press conference on Saturday, the day before hosting Lyon on Sunday evening.
Back to business. Five days after the victory against Liverpool (0-2) in the Champions League, PSG will return to the league with the reception of Lyon on Sunday (20:45), in the 30th matchday. A crucial match for the title race, especially since Lens overturned Toulouse (3-2) on Friday, coming within a point of PSG at the top of the table. Luis Enrique addressed the journalists on Saturday at Campus.
The postponement of the Lens-PSG match: “In every decision, there is always a positive and a negative side. It depends on each person’s point of view. It’s normal for everyone to defend their interests. The good news is that Strasbourg is in the Europa Conference League semi-finals, just like us in the Champions League. It’s positive for French football. But if you ask the other two (coaches)… It’s normal. Everyone defends their interests.”
The staff’s reflection on the lineup against Lyon with upcoming challenges: “It’s a very important week for the French league, with three matches to play and many points to be taken (Lyon, then Nantes and Angers, Editor’s Note). After that, there will be the Champions League semi-final. We need to manage this with all the players. There will be a lot of matches. We are used to managing this and we will try to do it in the best possible way.”
The emerging Brazilian talent from Lyon, Endrick: “I almost never talk about players from other teams. You should ask the question to Paulo Fonseca (Lyon’s coach). Decisive against Lorient? I hope he won’t do that on Sunday.”
Senny Mayulu: “Less playing time in recent weeks? It depends on the schedule, injuries… I am very happy with what he is doing in the team, he is an important player, a youth academy graduate. It’s important to know what he can offer to the team. It’s a real pleasure to have a player with this quality and mentality. He is prepared and will have the opportunity to play important matches, as he has done in the past.”
The evolution of Matvey Safonov, now a starter in PSG’s goal: “As usual. He arrived last season, he played a lot, much more than we could have imagined considering there was competition from Gigio Donnarumma. This year, pretty much the same thing. He wasn’t a starter at the beginning of the season. Things change very quickly in football. When he didn’t have the opportunity to play, he trained at a very high level. And when he could play, he shows his ability to give his best. But I am very happy with these three goalkeepers (Safonov, Lucas Chevalier, and Renato Marin). In a club of this level, you always have to be ready. It is important to show your mindset when you are not playing, even more than what you give to the team as a starter.”
“We want much more.” – Luis Enrique
Third consecutive Champions League semi-final: “It’s not normal to be at this stage of the competition three years in a row, it’s very tough, but we are proud, we want much more and we will try to do the same thing in the years to come, to progress even further. When you have confidence in a very young team like ours, it’s positive. We knew before how difficult it was to do this. It will be difficult to be in the semi-finals or more in the years to come.”
How PSG succeeded in being at their physical peak: “We didn’t do anything different, there is no incredible method. What we tried to do in this particular season is to manage injuries, the number of matches… But it was almost impossible because we had a lot of injuries, more than usual. We understand that it happens after the very long 2024-25 season. There are moments that all players, all teams, love, it’s the final moments of the season, the moments when you win trophies. We are comfortable when these moments arrive. And almost all players are ready. It’s very positive for us because we always want more trophies.”
Is PSG stronger than last season?: “I don’t know. Whether we are stronger or weaker, it’s not important. I would sign to be like last season, it wasn’t bad. If we are slightly stronger or weaker, it doesn’t bother me. This level is already incredible.”
Return of Fabián Ruiz: “He’s fine, he trained with the team this week and did all the sessions. He is perfectly fine. If everything goes well, he will be in the squad tomorrow (Sunday) and if we have the possibility, he will play his first minutes after his injury (January 20).”
Statements collected at the press conference.
