It is a lucid Luis Enrique Enrique on the lack of control of his team against Aston Villa, but delighted that she qualified herself, who appeared at a press conference Tuesday evening after the qualification of PSG for the semi-finals of the Champions League. Here are his entire comments, translated by us.
Ousmane Dembélé said that at 0-2, your team was too beautiful, that there were behaviors that he had not appreciated too much. Do you share this analysis? Has your team had deficiencies in attitude this evening according to you?
“It is a very positive point that will make us grow and progress”
“I think it was a match that corresponded to what we had considered, what we had in mind. As you can see, we did not speculate at any time of the match. We scored two goals, quickly, on two very beautiful counterattacks, taking advantage of the spaces. We are a team that attacks very well against the low blocks, but when we leave spaces, we attack even better. I think we made an exceptional start to the match, but it is true that I did not like the end of the first half at all. There were more actions that did not match the level of the Champions League. We conceded a goal on a somewhat childish error. Aston Villa then entered the match and this final phase. At the start of the second period, we conceded two goals in three minutes. We then encountered a lot of difficulties, endured a lot of suffering, suffered from many frank opportunities and they could even have equalized (on all two games). It was very, very, very complicated. But it is clear that this is a competition where [Aston Villa] Starts the second round almost eliminated, with very few options, and manages to reverse the situation … on our side, this allowed us to grow and improve. I am very happy with our new qualification in the semi-finals, for the second consecutive year. I believe that this is a very positive point that will make us grow and progress. And I am delighted with the final result. »»
Do you think you are stronger than last season in the Champions League? Are you more likely to go to the final? Do you have a favorite opponent between Arsenal and Real Madrid?
“No, I have no favorite opponent. Tomorrow, I will take advantage of the match [entre Arsenal et le Real Madrid] At home, dining and drinking a small beer. And I will take advantage of this eliminatory phase by watching the two games at the same time [dont Inter vs Bayern]as I usually do. And it will have a lot of fun to discover if we will play against an English or Spanish team, which will be special in both cases. »»
How do we live such a stressful match from the bench? How do you live from the edge of the field this moment when Paris collects two goals? Have you seen the elimination opposite arriving?
“Not the memory, in my career, of having known many moments when we have been so dominated”
“Elimination, no, because at no time Aston Villa managed to equalize on the double confrontation. But during these ten minutes, we had the feeling that the objective was to succeed in keeping the ball even if only, to release the ball as far as possible and to pass the midline. I do not remember, in my career, to have known many moments when we have been so dominated. But hey, what were we expected? It is a competition in which the opponent is already eliminated at the start and must therefore take risks and attack more intensely. And at that time, they were much superior to us. The atmosphere of the public was exceptional. But hey, these are moments that help you grow, that you have to know how to play, and I think my team has been mature enough to overcome them and it is a real experience to continue to improve. »»
To stay in the positive even if your players admitted that there was this vacuum in the match, there is this qualification for the semi-finals. What happened this evening is something that will serve you, that will serve the group to avoid you falling back into these flaws which could put you in difficulty in the semi-finals?
“There are moments, and matches, when the opponent plays better”
-“This is our goal, that’s what we hope, but it’s not just Paris Saint-Germain that plays. All teams in the Champions League are playing, there will only be four at this stage and we are part of it. What do you want me to tell you … But in any case, we cannot pretend to think that there is only Paris Saint-Germain which plays and that it can only do everything well. No, there are moments, and matches, where the opponent plays better, is more aggressive and more particularly in this type of confrontations, where it is often madness during the return match. You have to know how to accept it. I think we lacked master’s degree, especially at the end of the first half, which allowed Aston Villa to return to the match. »»
You talked about control. Your team, with their midfielder and his defenders, is used to being very stable and almost always determine the pace of the match. Why do you think it failed today and what do you think that your players can learn from this double confrontation you have won?
“I don’t think we failed. I still have to see the match again but the result we have obtained is, for me, clearly a success and it obviously strengthens our philosophy and our ambition to go win on any ground, without ever speculating. And I believe that after 0-2, there were times when our opponents were almost completely KO. But then, we entered a phase of easy ball losses, which is due to a little excess of confidence, which should never happen in this type of competition because it amounts to giving oxygen to an opponent who has nothing to lose and who is ready to take risks at any time.
“We have to try to bring the game to a field where we are better than our opponents”
It is really a shame to take this goal at the end of the first half … He allowed Aston Villa to return to the match and in the double confrontation … And when we play against such a physically strong team, which swings practically everything – free kicks from the midfield, air balloons, touches, corners – in the area, we can see that our football is not based on air duels. Our players are small in size, they are ball storage players. We must try to bring the game on a field where we are better than our opponents and in this sense, we have suffered a lot. But we were able to overcome this situation and I appreciated the end of the match a little more, where we had more mastery and possession. We have obviously suffered from each action that came closer to our surface, but the assessment is positive. »»
You have repeatedly repeated that these kinds of matches made a team grow and that you learned about yourself. What have you learned from your players tonight and what will you hope for they learned for the future?
“Surely there are a lot of lessons to be learned and many ways of improvement”
“It is obvious that our team has been one of the youngest in the competition from the start, and even the youngest since many matches in the final phase. But I believe that it is a sufficiently mature team to not only overthrow an unfavorable result as we did this season against Liverpool or Manchester City at home, but also to put the blue of heating when the opponent attacks in this way, and defend firmly and intensely. It was difficult, we had to run much more than usual in defense … But it also serves to prove that the team is not built for this type of game, which it is not made to defend. Finally, if, to defend far from its surface. I repeat, there are surely a lot of lessons to be learned and many tracks of improvement. »»
What did you think of Donnarumma who prevents you from disillusionment?
“Like all the rest of the team: Sen-Sa -ion-Lnel (in French). »»
){kind=link}