PSG avoid ‘disaster’ against OGC Nice | OneFootball

“All the conditions were prime for a disaster,” said Luis Enrique – Paris Saint-Germain avoided such a scenario with a 2-1 victory over OGC Nice on Wendesday night.

The PSG manager was highly critical of his side after their limp 3-1 defeat at home to Toulouse FC on Sunday. The defeat, described by Luis Enrique as Les Parisiens’ “worst of the season”, somewhat dampened the trophy-lifting ceremony at the Parc des Princes. In the build-up to the clash against Nice, the Spaniard said that he wanted “committed players”, seemingly calling into question the work ethic of certain players within the PSG squad.

Within this context, Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes and Randal Kolo Muani all remained in Paris and didn’t even travel with the squad on Wednesday. The former two suffered minor injuries ahead of the tie but the absences of Hakimi, Mendes and Kolo Muani are less easily explained – perhaps a point was being made by Luis Enrique.

This context, coupled with Nice’s recent form and superior motivation, left Luis Enrique fearing a “disaster” at the Allianz Riviera. “All of the circumstances were prime for a PSG disaster. We no longer have anything to play for in the league, all we want to do is prepare as best as possible for the Coupe de France final in 10 days, we were coming up against a very good team and a very good manager and a play style that I like a lot. Everything was aligned to attend a difficult match. The team showed that it came to play its football and showed itself to be competitive,” said Luis Enrique in a post-match press conference, attended by Get French Football News.

“I deserved this win in a difficult context. The team gave a lot to achieve its objective. I am happy with my team,” added the PSG manager.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle