Luis Enrique's choice to play Matvey Safonov against RC Lens rather than Gianluigi Donnarumma raises questions, just before the decisive PSG/Atlético match. Especially since the Parisian coach seemed delighted with his choice, both justified by the match and the overall context.
Turnover and a technical choice
Even his players admit it, Luis Enrique is sometimes confusing in his choices of team compositions and he proved it again this Saturday during PSG/Lens by starting Safonov in goal rather than Donnarumma. The Russian did the job, certainly little requested, but his sudden tenure must necessarily be linked to his coach's post-match statements. There is talk of turnover, as in other positions: “I want Safonov, Arnau (Tenas), Gigio (Donnarumma) to be ready to play at any time and I want that as much for the goalkeepers as for the outfield players. »
But it is also a question of the opponent's profile when asked why the Russian played: “Because I knew the difficulty we were going to encounter against the Lens pressure: very high pressure, one-on-one, with the goalkeeper as the only free player. » In other words, it was for his quality of recovery in the face of pressure that Safonov played rather than Donnarumma, even if Luis Enrique then refuted this justification, which was nevertheless logical given his comments. Still, the Russian gave some very good passes despite a waste (twelve missed passes) that his coach did not want to consider.
Between turnover as in all positions and optimal exploitation of the qualities of a goalkeeper linked to the profile of the opponent, it is hard to know exactly what Luis Enrique had in mind but this sudden choice logically sows doubt on the hierarchy of goalkeepers, especially four days before a decisive PSG / Atlético. Especially, when L’Equipe adds that “Luis Enrique has been thinking for several weeks about shaking up the hierarchy at the goalkeeper position”the idea of a shift to this position necessarily becomes more concrete.
A Donnarumma already replacing before the C1 last season
Last season too, Luis Enrique did not hesitate to make sometimes confusing choices with his Italian goalkeeper. Just before the round of 16 first leg against Real Sociedad, Donnarumma was benched in favor of Keylor Navas, then again before the quarter-final first leg against FC Barcelona, this time in favor of Arnau Tenas. Each time, the Italian had obviously played the C1 match that followed.
But this season, the competition from Matvey Safonov seems much greater than that of the two goalkeepers from last season. However, the argument about RC Lens' style of play will not hold up in three days against Atlético Madrid. Because if Will Still's men are the type to go after their opponents very high, that is absolutely not the style of the Madrilenians, who are more inclined to wait lower on the pitch. And if Safonov starts again on Wednesday evening, it will mean that the hierarchy has really changed in Paris.
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