When will the great Neymar return?
A question that has been asked since the start of the season, when the 29-year-old Brazilian international is only a shadow of himself.
A small goal and two assists to credit, in eight matches.
And "Ney", yet brilliant with the Seleçao against Uruguay (4-1), did not really reassure Sunday night, against OM (0-0).
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At least not the observers.
Because Mauricio Pochettino, he did not want to push the person.
Quite the reverse.
“
I'm happy with what he did today.
He made an effort for the team,
”said the Argentine coach at a press conference.
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In any case, “Poche” preferred to leave Angel Di Maria after the expulsion of Achraf Hakimi, at the hour of play… “We
had to make a choice… We made that one and if we had made it another, the question would undoubtedly have been the same… We brought in Thilo Kehrer.
Neymar went to the third middle, a little more free, with Leo Messi and Kylian Mbappé in front,
”he explained.
“I can only congratulate my players. "
Mauricio Pochettino
Mauricio Pochettino also felt that there was “a
lot of positive in this match
”, explaining for example that “
the team was solid and showed character, organization with and without the ball.
Too bad we played almost 40 minutes at 10 against 11… But even in this situation, we did good things and we controlled the game.
As a PSG coach, we always hope to win… But I can only congratulate my players,
”he dared, evoking“
a taste between bitter and sweet in view of the circumstances of the match.
Under these conditions, one can be satisfied to have taken a point on certain sides
”.
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And to add: “
We took a point against a great team, which is playing very well.
We were a little better
. ”
However, the Argentinian technician did not go so far as to speak of a completely successful service.
“
We are looking for balance and progress.
In a club like Paris, we know that the months of September, October and November are difficult.
But I'm happy with the development,
”he says, while progress has been difficult to see with the naked eye since taking office last January.