"
After the storm will come the good weather,
" promised Mauricio Pochettino on Monday. The Argentine coach of PSG did not believe in saying so. It is indeed in pouring rain and in dire conditions that his team won a convincing victory against Bruges on Tuesday (4-1), during the sixth and final day of the Champions League group stage. A game without a stake for the Parisians, qualified for the round of 16 before kick-off, but rich in lessons. And maybe in promises for the future. “
I'm happy with the level of play, especially in the first half. It was a step forward. We have seen improvements in the connections, in terms of understanding between the players. I'm happy too because the players needed this kind of performance
“, Underlines the former coach of Tottenham, delighted with the progress posted Tuesday.
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Obviously, not everything was perfect against Belgian champions cold-picked by the supersonic double of a Kylian Mbappé of great evenings, as often.
“
We need to better manage our weak times, which are perhaps much too weak,
” analyzes the 22-year-old world champion, who ends this first phase with four goals and as many assists.
If they had a full first period, "
well organized, well together, more compact
"According to Abdou Diallo, the Parisians have indeed lowered their footing after the break and overall opened too many defensive breaches.
It is not for nothing that Gianluigi Donnarumma was one of the best players on the field on Tuesday night.
A porosity all the more worrying as Bruges, the last of the group, was not frankly in a great evening, far from the convincing performance of the first leg, in Belgium, when PSG had been very happy to scratch the draw (1 -1).
Read also PSG's notes against Bruges: Mbappé and Messi show the way, Donnarumma solid
Nevertheless, the results remain clearly positive for Paris-SG, in particular in the use of the ball and the technical relations between the offensive players, in this case Mbappé, Angel Di Maria and Lionel Messi, the latter having signed a double, his second in C1 this season. "
There was natural in the behavior of the offensive players and fluidity in their relations,
" says Pochettino. And to add: "
So that talent can express itself, we must not put up barriers.
You have to give ideas, but not put up barriers.
Today there was this balance.
(…) In a process of progression, there is always a moment when there is a click.
I am happy to have seen this balance between the mechanisms, the automation, and the expression of talent and this freedom in the game.
”Method Coué for the challenged and weakened Mauricio Pochettino?
Zidane's shadow still hangs
Contested and still on the grill according to some Spanish sources, the
SER
announcing just after the match that the club is already looking for his successor, specifying that a certain Zinédine Zidane was rather receptive to Parisian advances for want of having said yes. By chance, the former world champion was in Paris in recent days. "
I feel the support of the club and the players
“, Had promised the Argentinian technician on Monday. In any case, his credit could only have been dented by this choppy start to the season in form, even if the results are there. In C1, we note that PSG finished the group stage without the slightest success on the road, a first since 2004-05, and showing worrying limits in almost all matches, with little control, a lot of imbalances. The victory against Manchester City (2-0), on the second day, appeared to be a successful test. Hopes were quickly showered… The “MNM” has often represented a problem rather than a solution. A building site. Kylian Mbappé nonetheless remains the natural leader of this attack under construction, despite the weight of his teammates, while the goalkeepers (Donnarumma, Navas) and Marquinhos shine.
One thing is certain: there is still work to be done to make PSG a war machine capable of holding out against the best teams on the continent, such as Liverpool or Bayern Munich, two of the clubs that Paris could meet in the round of 16. Besides. While waiting to know who from Chelsea or Juventus will win Group H, we know that Ajax Amsterdam, Manchester United and Real Madrid are among the potential opponents of the capital club. “
We know that we will have a complicated opponent in the 8th. But to win the Champions League, you have to be able to beat all the teams
“, Pochettino rightly recalls, before the December 13 draw.
Between now and the spring festivities, PSG knows what remains to be done.
The return of Sergio Ramos could help.
This could encourage the staff to opt for a three-defender scheme which would perhaps resolve a number of pitfalls, on the sides or in front.
“Today, I hope this is the starting point to keep improving every day. "
Mauricio Pochettino
“
There are often things that get in the way of all teams looking to progress.
We're talking about adaptation, understanding ... It takes time.
Today, I hope that this is the starting point to continue to improve every day
”, insists Pochettino, who will be able to check if his team is indeed on the upward slope from Sunday, against Monaco, during the 18th day of Ligue 1. One of the last three matches on the Red and Blue menu in 2021, before a duel against the fans of Entente Feignies Aulnoye FC, N3 club (5th division), in the Coupe de France, in Valenciennes, and a trip to Lorient in the championship.
It will then be time to look to 2022, with dreams of Europe in our heads.