Over the years, PSG’s star-studded, overpriced squads have racked up a depressing list of Champions League fiascos, acquiring an unwanted reputation as careless spenders without a game plan.
With the likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi now gone, the French champions have a golden opportunity to set the record straight on Saturday when they take on Inter Milan in the Champions League final.
The showdown in Munich is a remarkable achievement for coach Luis Enrique, who has stripped his squad of superstars and molded it into a youthful, cohesive and forward-minded force.
In the process, he has helped change perceptions of the Qatari-owned club both at home and abroad.
“PSG have reviewed their plans, giving sporting consistency and achievement priority over glitz and glamour,” says football consultant Xavier Barret. “This reset began two years ago with the decision not to renew Lionel Messi, to sell off Neymar and then eventually to let Mbappé go too, even if reluctantly.”
Speaking at the Parc des Princes ahead of PSG’s quarter-final against Aston Villa, Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel credited the club’s change of strategy with turning the Parisians into tournament favourites.
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“Getting rid of the Galactico stars and bringing in all the hungry young players (...) who play as a team, that’s a new thing here in Paris,” said the 1999 Champions League winner. “This is the best PSG team I've seen in all these years of coming here.”
Becoming ‘likeable’
The reset coincided with the arrival of Luis Enrique, whose style of play and winning record have earned the respect of fans and opponents, says former PSG defender and captain Éric Rabésandratana.
“Once you start winning against the top clubs in Europe – and in style – people start looking at you differently,” says the football pundit for FRANCE 24’s sister radio RFI.
“Luis Enrique has put in place a game plan that is very testing for opponents. There are so many permutations between players and between positions that it drives opponents crazy,” he adds. “It’s the culmination of a transition that began last season and is now bearing fruit.”
Read moreAfter Mbappé: Could PSG’s least ‘galactic’ team be their most successful yet?
Teamwork, selflessness and tactical discipline – traits that were so lacking in past seasons – have become hallmarks of Luis Enrique’s PSG. They were on full display in the semi-final against Arsenal, which saw January signing Khvicha Kvaratskhelia cancel out Bukayoko Saka in defence while also leading PSG’s counterattacks.
“Would PSG have signed a player like ‘Kvara’ in the Messi-Neymar era? Certainly not. But today, there’s consistency to the club's transfer policy,” notes Barret, for whom the Parisians have become “likeable because they play very well and are young.”
The French champions have the most youthful team in the competition, averaging just 24. Should they win on Saturday, they would become the second youngest to lift the Champions League trophy after the Ajax Amsterdam squad that triumphed in 1994-1995.
Their multi-pronged attack is especially precocious, with 19-year-old Désiré Doué and 22-year-old Bradley Barcola starring alongside talismanic striker Ousmane Dembélé, who will surely be a serious contender for the Ballon d’Or should PSG defeat Inter Milan.
Remarkably, Luis Enrique’s squad combines youth with the tactical nous required of top-tier European football.
“When you look at this team, you see quality players who work together and have the same objective,” says Rabésandratana. “This mentality is precisely what you need to succeed at the highest level.”
Composure, on and off the pitch
Mental toughness is another quality that was sorely lacking in past PSG teams, but which Dembélé and his teammates appear to have acquired.
The Parisians showed unprecedented grit in late January when they fought back from two goals down against Manchester City at the Parc des Princes, narrowly averting an early exit from the tournament.
The turnaround stood in stark contrast with past collapses, from the infamous 2017 “Remontada” in Barcelona to their home implosion against a woeful Manchester United two years later.
The players’ composure has mirrored the club’s greater sobriety off the pitch, too, with Luis Enrique able to manage his squad free from the capricious demands of superstar players and the club’s Qatari owners.
Read morePSG vs Arsenal: How ‘quiet revolution’ took Paris to brink of Champions League final
“PSG have given Luis Enrique a free hand when it comes to choosing players in agreement with sporting director Luis Campos, who has done a fantastic job as he did previously at Monaco and Lille,” says Barret.
Ditching their past smugness, PSG now seem to be cultivating values that win over the fans, including professionalism and a certain form of simplicity, exemplified by Luis Enrique cycling to the training ground or chatting casually with supporters.
“It's a very positive thing because at the end of the day it's a sport, and in sport what's most important are the values,” the coach told a press conference ahead of the return leg against Arsenal.
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After years of bitter disappointment in Europe, both the club’s supporters and sports commentators have faith in this new-look PSG.
“It’s the first time that the public and the media want to see PSG win,” a Parc des Princes regular told AFP, noting that there was “much less antipathy” towards this team than in the past.
Barret is predicting a win for Luis Enrique’s men, banking on the Parisians’ youthful enthusiasm against an ageing Inter side.
“If there’s ever a time for Paris Saint-Germain to win the Champions League, surely it’s now,” adds Rabésandratana. “But in football, you're never safe from a red card, an injury, anything. It’s not always enough to deserve the win.”
This article was adapted from the French original by Benjamin Dodman.
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