Warren Zaïre-Emery and Joao Neves faced the press on Sunday at the Vélodrome following PSG’s convincing 3-0 victory over Olympique de Marseille.
Warren Zaire-Emery (PSG midfielder, after the 3-0 win in Marseille): “Was a thrilling Classique expected? That was your prediction (smiles). We approach every match the same way. We treat all games with the same seriousness. We remain focused at all times. We train to win every match of the season and we knew it would be tough here. We did our job, scoring three goals without conceding, and we are all very pleased and proud of ourselves. The plan? It hasn’t changed; it is often the same: make the opponent run, keep the ball as much as possible, and exploit our strengths while targeting their weaknesses. We executed this well, netting three goals here. Any doubts following the draw against PSV in the Champions League? No. We had enough time to prepare properly. We came here to win. We managed to lift our heads up. The red card? I didn’t see the foul. It’s part of the game, and fortunately for us, they were reduced to 10 men, allowing us to dominate the match even more. Even with 11 against 11, we were doing well, focused, and making them run. We created chances, so I don’t think it would have changed anything had we finished with both teams at 11.
Any message to Ligue 1? The goal isn’t to send messages with every match. We come here to win. It’s pretty much the same everywhere; we want to win every game. We are PSG, and that’s what it means to be at a big club. We must always win, always give our all, and present ourselves well. Even against Marseille, we treated this match like any other. (…) We are always very happy to be at the top of the table. Is OM a title contender? Like every team in the league. (on OM not having beaten PSG in Ligue 1 at Marseille since 2011) I believe it’s been 13 years… Well, I was 5 years old (smiles). And it’s always a joy to win here, whether you’re from the academy or playing at home. We don’t have our supporters to celebrate this, they couldn’t be here, but this match is for them. They were at training two days ago. I hope they are happy. We gave our all for them.
Also read: Ratings from OM-PSG: Neves omnipresent, Barcola and Dembélé decisive, Marseillais outclassed.
I think even before the red card, we were the better team, as we have been in every match.
João Neves (PSG midfielder): “This is my first goal for PSG, but I am mainly happy with the victory. They received a red card and we took advantage of it, but that’s football. I believe that even before the red card, we were the better team, as we have been throughout all our matches. The plan? We have a game idea, a style of play, and we implemented it right from the start of the match. We will continue to do this in the next match. How important is the Classique for supporters? I know it’s significant for them. I want to take this opportunity to thank them because they are always behind us. Are they waiting at the airport? I didn’t expect that (smiles). It’s very nice.”
