PSG receives Nantes this Saturday, at 5 pm at the Parc des Princes, as part of the 14th day of Ligue 1. Mauricio Pochettino could finally be able to count on Neymar, already recovered from his adductor injury.
The Parisian coach gave news of the Brazilian at a press conference, also specifying that a decision will be made in the coming hours for the presence or not of Sergio Ramos.
In your career, you have transformed a lot of players like Harry Kane at Tottenham or Jay Rodriguez at Southampton.
With you, has Mbappé transformed his game?
MAURICIO POCHETTINO.
When we arrived, Kylian was already the great player he is.
It is part of a logic of improvement, we are not responsible.
You have to give the players credit.
We support him and I am satisfied with what he does, with his progress.
He has great potential and keeps improving every time.
Neymar, Kimpembe, Verratti and Ramos are not in the medical statement.
Does that mean they'll be in the group?
Players who are not on the roster are not injured, but this is not the only parameter to consider.
There is also the state of physical form to take into account, the state to face the competition.
I still have to do a meeting with the performance sector.
Could Neymar have some playing time against Nantes?
He trained well with the group today, we'll see after the meeting.
I am not 100% sure, but I believe he will be part of the group.
Do you join Mino Raiola when he hints that Donnarumma will finish No.1?
Those around them think that their player is the best and that he should play.
Even in training centers it's the same.
My wife also thinks that I am the best coach in the world.
I tell him no, it's not (laughs).
There is love, we try to protect our loved ones, it's human, I try to protect my son.
He's the most beautiful, the smartest for me, but it's always like that, it's different.
Those around you will speak with heart and affection, a trainer cannot think so.
However, we are the first to have empathy for those around us because they can suffer and we too do not like to see our loved ones suffer.
The fact that Messi is with you until Christmas, without having to think about the selection, does he delight you and will it allow him to be fully free during this period?
It's not going to change the situation and the time management very much.
We have four weeks until the Christmas break.
We will play nine games, then there will be the trip that will take us to Qatar, then the South Americans will participate in new playoff games at the end of January.
And, in February, it will also be short with 28 days only ...
What do you mean when you say that you do not apply your ideas but those of PSG in your interview for L'Équipe?
I think I've been clear, I'm talking about adapting the ideas of a coach to a club.
Afterwards, you have to adapt to the group, to its characteristics, to bring it as close as possible to the ideas you want to have.
🎬🎙️💬 Feedback on the passage of coach Mauricio Pochettino in our studio #PSGtv before the press conference #PSGFCN pic.twitter.com/mVUNSwa7qf
- Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_inside) November 19, 2021
How's Ramos?
He is training well, the progress is good.
He has trained with the squad three times this season.
We will analyze to find out if he can be in the group.
Is he as determined as when he arrived or does he feel a little frustrated?
For a player like Sergio Ramos, a world champion, with this level of competition, it is not easy not to play but he shows maturity and patience to face these situations.
How long will it take to see real identity in your team's play?
We already see some signs of our game identity, things that we like.
We can talk about philosophy, but it remains subjective.
The team already has an identity.
A club like PSG with its ideas and will look for a coach because it sees that it has ways of doing things that can correspond to its needs.
We see progress in different areas of the team, we like it.
The identity of the team can be seen and we hope that it will be seen even more in all matches.
