PSG and Thomas Tuchel are preparing for the “return” match against AS Monaco this Wednesday evening, three days after the spectacular draw conceded at Parc des Princes (3-3). The Parisian coach notably entrusted this Tuesday in a press conference the desires of revenge of his group.
How will you prepare for this second confrontation in three days?
THOMAS TUCHEL. You don't have to watch a lot of videos to analyze. It's easy. Just a match. We are ready. It was the expected, very difficult match against a very strong team. There are details to adjust. We are ready to win in Monaco. I am convinced that we are capable of doing it. Everyone saw that they were strong.
We talk about this system, in 4-4-2. Against Monaco, did the lack of Marquinhos in the midfield weigh?
( He mimes to fall asleep and snore ) Maybe they are the same ones who criticize when he plays in central defense. I never read anything, it's the best thing. We can play 4-1-4-1, we can play 3-5-2… We did not find a structure in football to win everything. She does not exist. We have to live with each pattern. We have to play with a certain way. In football, that's how it is, you can't just talk about such a space. If you lose an easy ball, where, when, why. If we are capable of back-pressing. If we are tight enough, protect our attack. These are always the same issues, regardless of the scheme. There are games where we win 5-0. But we cannot react too much from a result.
Do you think we expect too much?
No. It's good. We are here to give pleasure. It was a good match for the fans. Not for us. We could have won it 4-2 or 5-2. The 3-3 was weird. We don't expect too much. But we have to admit that we are playing against a very strong team. You can't always target the structure.
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What do you think of the complementarity of the attack duo Mbappé-Icardi? Does it make you think of the duo that Mbappé formed with Falcao in Monaco?
Yes, it's kind of the same. Mauro, like Falcao, likes to play like a real 9. Kylian plays a little more fluidly. He likes to play on the side to accelerate. It's a good combination. They like to play together. They are dangerous together. They play on the last line, where it's hard to defend. They are a good mix.
We saw you a little annoyed with the press after Sunday's draw. Do you also make your choices based on a balance of locker room?
We can say that if we play in 4-3-3, we have three players for a single position of number 9. We have to adapt. We are always thinking about this thing I was not angry. We won 8 times and everyone said to me: “Ah! you found an eleven-type ”. And then I have a request to find out if 4-4-2 is a problem. It's a little hard to understand, to react intelligently. To give a good answer, one must have a good question.
Do you want to maintain this 4-4-2 against Monaco, an opponent who looks a bit like Dortmund?
Monaco is completely different from Dortmund. Maybe we will have four injured. Maybe we won't play in 4-4-2. We find the best solutions. Someone can judge that it is to balance the locker room. I've been doing this for 10 years. Every day, I have to manage the minutes, the positions, balance the team, the locker room.
Are you likely to run this Wednesday? And what do you think of the last weeks of Di Maria, who seems more withdrawn?
But he's one of your fantastic four, right? He does a lot of decisive things. He has a lot of penultimate passes. You know I love him very much. He is super reliable, super competitive with a good mentality. I love Angel, that's clear. You have to be careful between the 70th and 90th minutes. This is another good test. Everyone wants to play this second game to show that we can win. I am not sure to stop this dynamic.
