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Unexpected recruit at PSG, Luis Enrique had a surprise in store for him

Bernard Colas

Journalist

Passionate about sport, cinema and television (on screen as well as behind) since his childhood, Bernard has been a journalist for 10 Sport since 2018. More skilful with the keyboard in hand than with the ball on his feet, he decides to mainly cover a beloved sport, criticized and hated at the same time (football) and a sport that is not one (wrestling).

Matvey Safonov is one of the new additions to Saint-Germain this season, the Russian having been recruited last summer for €20m. Eager to shake up the hierarchy of goalkeepers, the 25-year-old player did not imagine having so much playing time until now, proof of Luis Enrique's confidence.

Four new players arrived in the capital during the summer transfer window, including Matvey Safonov. At 25, the goalkeeper left his native Russia and his training club Krasnodar to try the adventure on the side of PSG with full ambition. Gianluigi Donnarumma was in fact established as a starter upon his arrival, which did not prevent the Parisian recruit from setting the tone for his first experience abroad.

“I come to Paris to fight”

« Nobody ever told me I was number 2had let go Safonov shortly after his arrival, in an interview with the Russian journalist Nobel Arustamyan. I come to Paris to fight. Even if they had told me I was number 2, I wouldn't have listened to them. It's up to me to give the best of myself. I don't see myself as a number 2. I don't want to be a substitute ». Luis Enrique has so far trusted him seven times, already enough to delight the person concerned.

Safonov didn't imagine himself playing so much

The Team reveals in his columns of the day that Matvey Safonov did not imagine having such playing time so quickly as he made it known in private. The Russian was indeed giving himself time to integrate into a new environment before hoping to shake Gianluigi Donnarumma. Aram Fundukyan assures him, his former player could well cause problems for the transalpine goalkeeper: “ When PSG came, I told him that he would be number 2, confides the vice-president of Krasnodar in the sports daily. He told me: “I've never been number 2. That doesn't scare me, I'm going to try and fight for the number 1 position.” He saw it as a challenge. He's a workaholic, he will give everything to prove his question is not “can I achieve it?”, it is “when?” ».

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