Mats Hummels, defender of Borussia Dortmund, noticed the weak taste for defensive withdrawal among “two or three players” of PSG, Wednesday during the German victory (1-0) in the semi-final first leg of the Champions League.
The big return of a refrain often heard last season, much less this season. Mats Hummels, defender of Borussia Dortmund, noticed the lack of appetite of certain PSG players for defensive withdrawals, Wednesday during the semi-final first leg of the Champions League from which Borussia emerged victorious (1-0). A success built on an incredible riot of energy since the Germans ran eight kilometers more than the Parisians during the meeting (106.5 kilometers, compared to 98.1). Asked about this significant gap, the German international thinks that this is precisely due to the lower efforts supposedly made by certain Parisians.
“Paris has two or three players who don’t make every meter defensively”
“It’s a specialty of the house,” he said on DAZN. “But we have to do it if we want to beat a team like that. It also has to be said that Paris already has two or three players who don’t make all the meters defensively, but they have great offensive qualities, so I suppose that ‘They usually run a little less than the opponent, but unfortunately that doesn’t make them weaker.’
Edin Terzic, Borussia coach, is not surprised by the difference in efforts between the two teams. It’s the trademark of his team. “120 kilometers (per match) is the standard that we have often reached this year” it should be noted. “It’s also necessary. We talk about the basics, the mileage, the semi-finals of the Champions League. We also showed good things with the ball. You need everything and then you can earn your place at Wembley.”
On Sky Austria, Marcel Sabitzer praised these fierce efforts, particularly in the first period. “I think we defended very well in the first half,” said the midfielder. “We barely let anything happen. You can’t defend everything in the second half. We still tried and had a bit of luck, you have to be honest. It was very tiring. The stadium was on fire. So you do it, it makes sense.”
