Like his disappointing performances against Dortmund in the semi-final of the Champions League, Warren Zaire-Emery appeared less sharp during the second part of the PSG season. Aware of his bad situation, the 18-year-old midfielder says he is convinced of being able to return to his best level.
He failed to exist. Aligned in the midfield during the reception of Dortmund on Tuesday in the semi-final return of the Champions League (0-1), Warren Zaire-Emery was not up to the task. As in the first leg at Signal Iduna Park (1-0), the PSG midfielder appeared self-effacing, shy and sometimes feverish against Borussia. Like his performances since the start of 2024. After a thunderous start to the season, which propelled him to the French team, the 18-year-old player has fallen into line over the months. But he hasn’t lost his confidence.
“It’s true that since January, these haven’t been my best matches,” Zaire-Emery conceded after the elimination against Dortmund. “Now, I give everything in every match. When I see the supporters, the club we have, our players, I tell myself that I cannot give up. I will come back stronger. I know that I am a young player, that I have the future ahead of me and I will do everything to be the best possible.”
With the Blues at Euro 2024?
While he celebrated his majority exactly two months ago, the gifted man of Martinican origin has already played 41 matches with Paris this season, scoring 3 goals and providing 7 assists (all competitions combined). That’s a lot for such a young player. Perhaps too much for the body of a high school student, who is preparing to take his baccalaureate in a few weeks. Since his ankle injury against Greece at the end of November (2-2), during his first selection for the French team (by scoring his first goal with the Blues), Warren Zaire-Emery has no longer had the same performance on field.
The vivacity, mastery and audacity he showed at the start of the season, when Thierry Henry named him captain of the Espoirs, are missing from these latest performances. Given his age, such a counter-blow does not seem prohibitive. And Luis Enrique continues to maintain his confidence in him, aware of his enormous potential. We’ll see if Didier Deschamps will do the same on May 16, when he announces the list of players selected for the France team to play in Euro 2024 in Germany.
