There is no Messi and Neymar; no problem. PSG strengthened with Luis Enrique

Things change surprisingly quickly in football.

Last Friday (September 15) evening, serious questions were raised about Luis Enrique’s suitability as PSG coach. A 3-2 defeat against Nice, who defended deep and crumbled on the counter-attack, resulted in the club’s worst start to the season (eight points from five Ligue 1 games) since its acquisition by Qatari Sports Investment in 2011.

But four days later, at the same venue, PSG looked relaxed and in control as they began their latest bid for the Champions League title with a convincing 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund. The result puts PSG top of Group F after one matchday, with their next game against Newcastle on October 4, who drew 0-0 with Milan.

Luis Enrique has only played six official matches with PSG, but it is already possible to draw parallels between his new team and his previous team, the Spanish national team. Both teams show a desire to play dominant football with high percentages of possession, but as teams that have regressed in recent years, they need some change.

PSG have been in decline since losing the 2019/2020 Champions League final and Luis Enrique, who has spoken openly about the club’s “obsession” with the tournament, appears to be trying to build something sustainable – a far cry from the signing of 34. Two years ago it was Lionel Messi’s attempt to get ahead in Europe.

This Galacticos approach, with Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Messi playing as forwards in a 3-4-3 formation, left PSG quite vulnerable. PSG scored a lot of goals but offered next to nothing defensively, won on individual skill rather than tactics, and were consistently eliminated from the Champions League in the round of 16.

In Ligue 1, last season was PSG’s worst season in eight years in terms of goal difference (although they still finished at +49) and they conceded more goals in 38 matches than in the 2011/2012 season (40). The defeat against Clermont in the last round was one of 10 defeats in 28 matches in all competitions in the second half of the season after the break for the 2022 World Cup. PSG retained their title by just one point against Lens; The previous five Ligue 1 titles had all been won by at least 12 points.

PSG points, goals scored and goals conceded by season in Ligue 1:

However, the situation may change.

After Tuesday’s match, Borussia Dortmund coach Edin Terzic said PSG were very united; This is a significant compliment considering Luis Enrique is still deciding on his most suitable starting lineup.

Luis Enrique’s first six games included 17 different players in the team’s starting lineup, but only six: centre-back Milan Skriniar, goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, full-backs Lucas Hernandez and Achraf Hakimi, and midfielders Warren Zaire-Emery and Vitinha. He came to every match. The age of the last three players does not exceed 25 and Luis Enrique has made Randal Kolo Muani the third center for PSG this season, having previously used Gonçalo Ramos and Marco Asensio as a false nine in this position.

“I see an endless range of options in the attack of these players: all foreign, all young, all of high quality, with a variety of options,” said Luis Enrique after the Nice defeat. “As a coaching staff, we need to find the optimal combinations that allow the players to perform at their best and know who gets along best with each other on the field.”

These combinations started to work against Dortmund, who used a 5-3-2 formation with quick full-backs to close down PSG’s space, man-mark their midfielders and negate the pace of Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele:

PSG’s attack was built on a rotation of positions, with left-back Hernandez staying behind and moving towards the centre, while Hakimi moved forward on the opposite flank. Mbappe plays inside and Vitinha pulls left. There are many large triangles in the game, and the shape usually resembles 3-2-5.

The situation against Dortmund was like this…

Here’s a sample of the first half of the details Luis Enrique has instilled in the team.

Vitinha received a forward pass from Skriniar and found himself under pressure from the Dortmund midfield. Back to Hernandez…

…Luis Enrique, who is on the right of the two technical areas, signals him to run into the lane to receive the return pass…

But he stands still, leaving no room for Hernandez to advance, and Luis Enrique eventually breaks out of the technical area and tips the midfielder.

Both PSG goals were the result of wide combinations down the right side.

At the penalty spot that opened the scoring early in the second half, Hakimi passed to Dembele and made a run, but the winger dribbled past Julian Ruyerson and deflected the ball towards the touchline…

Having achieved success, Dembele plays a wall with Hakimi, moves behind the Dortmund team and enters a dangerous position…

Mbappe has no time to get into the box and Kolo Muani’s move comes out selflessly, drawing central defenders towards goal. Mbappe kicks incorrectly, for some reason he opens himself up to kick with his left foot instead of his right…

However, the ball hits Niklas Sule’s hand and a penalty decision is given. Mbappe fulfills this clearly.

The second goal, scored 10 minutes later, was even better.

PSG gradually attacked from the left wing, won the ball with successful counter-presses, and when Mbappe’s cross went out, Vitinha found himself in the corner of the penalty area.

Vitinha dribbles the ball, then passes it to Hakimi and they play one on one…

Hakimi keeps his cool, comes in, sits next to centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck and shoots past Gregor Kobel:

PSG midfielder Manuel Ugarte said after the match: “Tactically the most important thing is to be organised, because the opponent can punish you for little things and tactical mistakes.”

Defensively, PSG played perfectly: there was not a single serious moment, there was only one shot on target, and 8 of Borussia’s 14 shots on target came from outside the penalty area.

PSG may not be doing everything right in attack this season, but their counter-pressing and high pressing are firing on all cylinders.

Their average possession rate (71.6%) is the highest in Ligue 1, but they are also the team with the second most possessions in high positions (58). As Dortmund moved from a 5-3-2 formation to a 4-3-3, Luis Enrique once again adopted a man-oriented pressing formation.

PSG had a high seven recoveries (just one at Dortmund) – twice the average per game in the previous two European seasons, including six in the first 31 minutes of the match. Only two more Champions League matches have been played since the 2018/2019 season (10 against Real Madrid under Mauricio Pochettino in February 2022 and 8 against Galatasaray under Thomas Tuchel in December 2019).

Here is an example of Dortmund trying to put pressure in midfield.

Zaire-Emery puts pressure on Mats Hummels and when he passes to Julian Brandt, PSG centre-back Skriniar puts pressure on him and forces him to pass with one touch to Emre Can. Ugarte takes the ball from Can’s hand and gets fouled.

The audacity of this approach, especially against a fast Dortmund team, is seen at the point where Ugarte takes a knock on his legs. Central defender Skriniar finds himself in PSG’s attacking trio, leaving two of his own players in the defensive line against two opponents…

“If we talk about the results, we didn’t start very well, but everywhere I was responsible it was the same,” said Luis Enrique after the match against Nice. “I want my players to understand how I want them to play. I also want to achieve results as soon as possible, but this takes time.”

In the 2011/2012 season, it took Enrique six matches to get his first win at Roma, his first club in his coaching career, and in the 2013/2014 season, he achieved only one win in his first nine matches with Celta Vigo. When he returned to the Spanish National Team at the end of 2019, after a four-month break due to personal reasons, the team had won only three of its first nine matches.

Just five days after beating Dortmund, PSG will host Marseille on Sunday in their first Le Classique match of the season; That’s plenty of time to reevaluate your hopes.

Liam Tarm, Athletic

Translation and adaptation – Oleg Didukh