Cedric Chasseur with AFP // Photo credits: Ibrahim Ezzat / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP
Without Kylian Mbappé, sidelined, or Neymar, the new formula PSG failed to unlock the Lorient safe (0-0) and missed its Ligue 1 debut on Saturday at the Parc des Princes. We can’t do without Mbappé, the top scorer in the club’s history. By depriving itself of such an offensive weapon, Paris could expect to pay a high price and there were no surprises in this regard against the Hakes. The showdown between Mbappé, who wants to stay until the end of his contract in 2024 without extending it, and PSG, has therefore had unfortunate consequences. The French star, not selected for the match, was present in the stands, all smiles alongside the latest recruit, Ousmane Dembélé. But his shadow hovered over the lawn of the Parisian enclosure.
An ordinary team
For his big debut on the PSG bench, new coach Luis Enrique was able to get a glimpse of what awaits him at least until the end of the month and the end of the transfer period. In the absence of Mbappé, the Parisian game is not the same and the team suddenly becomes very ordinary. By starting six players who landed in the capital this summer, Luis Enrique wanted to mark the occasion and impose his ideas. “Today we missed more intense work off the ball and also more calls between the lines. We have to generate more goal-scoring chances. It was a game we deserved to win, however. state,” said the Spanish technician at the microphone of Europe 1.
This new look PSG has followed the precepts of the Iberian technician, adept at possession of the ball, sometimes to the point of overdose, as his Spanish selection had sadly demonstrated during the World Cup-2022 by being picked up by Morocco in 8th final. He precisely lacked the speed and percussion to worry Lorient, most of the time curled up in his own half of the field.
“We knew that the identity of PSG was changing. When we know Luis Enrique and his ability to impose very high possession on the field and add strong pressing, we imagined living this balance of power. We were prepared for it. We would have liked to defuse this pressure and have a few sequences of possession, but above all we had to defend well and be very compact. We controlled their possession relatively well, but they deprived us of oxygen.” reported, for his part, Régis Le Bris, the coach of Lorient.
There were thus very few opportunities to get their teeth into for the Parisians. The new Portuguese center-forward Gonçalo Ramos was quite discreet in front of goal, only very rarely managing to get into a striking position, except at the start of the match (8th) and in the final quarter of an hour (78th). South Korean Lee Kang-in also had a great opportunity after the break, but he completely missed his recovery (47th), like his match where he was valiant, but inefficient. It was then the turn of Fabian Ruiz to see his shot repelled at close range by Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo (77th).
Paris could have been surprised
By dint of stumbling on the Breton defense, Paris could even have been surprised in return, Laurent Abergel having found the post of Gianluigi Donnarumma at the end of the first period by recovering a ball after a bad pass from Milan Skriniar to Vitinha (41st ). This month of August is likely to be very long for PSG, pending the outcome of the Mbappé soap opera.