The matches follow one another and the observation remains, unfortunately, too often the same: this Paris Saint-Germain clearly lacks offensive efficiency. Four days after the defeat (0-1) against Bayern Munich during the 5th day of the Champions League, Luis Enrique's men this time shared the points with FC Nantes who finally recovered what he came to get (1-1). In a low block and although outrageously dominated by the reigning French champions, the Canaries took advantage of the chronic clumsiness of the Parisians in front of goal. Despite the return of Gonçalo Ramos, aligned at the forefront of the Ile-de-France attack, and a Hakimi-Mendes duo more than ever focused forward, the capital club thus experienced all the difficulty in the world to be decisive in the last few meters.
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The crazy figures of Parisian clumsiness
If Achraf Hakimi's opening score – taking advantage of a deflection from Gonçalo Ramos on a cross from Nuno Mendes – after two short minutes of play quickly warmed up the icy atmosphere of the Parc des Princes, the rest of the events has it proven much less fruitful for the current leader of L1. In turn, the Parisian players thus demonstrated astonishing clumsiness (21 chances and 10 shots on target out of 24 attempts), stumbling, moreover, on a Patrik Carlgren – aligned in place of Alban Lafont – inspired to his first start of the season. So yes, some will remember the 84.1% ball possession, a record in a Ligue 1 match since the 2006/2007 season, others will mention the 1008 passes made this Saturday evening by the Rouge et Bleu but the finality remains the same: Paris has been scuttled.
Guilty of an offensive game that was far too stereotypical – especially in the second half – and unable to find the fault in Nantes' 5-3-2 (which became a 5-4-1 after returning from the locker room), PSG ultimately failed in its reaction mission after the setback conceded in Bavaria. With a Bradley Barcola, still far too discreet, a deliberate but imprecise Kang-In Lee like his shot on the post (22nd), a Gonçalo Ramos initially sharp before lowering his footing and uninspired midfielders in construction, the residents of the Parc des Princes – although supported by a very active Nuno Mendes-Achraf Hakimi duo – never found the key. An inefficiency that Désiré Doué and Ousmane Dembélé, who came on for the last quarter of an hour, only continued. Questioned at the microphone of DAZN after this new disappointment, Fabian Ruiz noted, in this respect, the offensive difficulties in Ile-de-France.
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The locker room is disillusioned
“I think he missed that goal. We had chances in the second half to score this long-awaited goal. It's football. He lacked a little more confidence in front of goal. I need to work. We want to work to pass this milestone and achieve this requirement to string together victories. You need a little peace and quiet to work together. It is tranquility that will allow us to progress offensively and defensively. We are capable of doing great things because we are a great team”noted the Spaniard. A speech similar to that given by Gonçalo Ramos a few moments earlier. “We were better than Nantes but it was a difficult match because we were unable to score more goals. We created a lot of chances but let's keep our heads high and keep working. He lacked finishing and remaining calm in front of goal..
Questioned, in turn, about the recurring difficulty of his men in completing actions, Luis Enrique also showed his disappointment, nevertheless welcoming the extreme domination of his team. “We totally dominated the match against Nantes who defended very well. This goal was missing. That's the objective, insist, insist… There are more missed opportunities in the second half. The championship is difficult, like in the Champions League.. Before adding at the press conference: “we shot 24 times, 8 or 10 on target, we did all the homework but the score is not enough. You were talking about a 9 as the solution to everything so you had a 9 tonight but still the same thing. The solution is never just one player, it's a team sport.. Relaunched in the mixed zone in the scenario of this meeting where FC Nantes, for its part, demonstrated formidable efficiency (5 shots, 2 on target, 1 goal), Warren Zaire-Emery seemed, for his part, somewhat disillusioned. Disillusionment is a bit of a strong word, I think. I think the best thing in these moments is to say nothing and go back to work, initially said the French international.
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And to add: “It's hard to hear (the whistles, editor's note), it's part of the frustration but we have the capacity to do better, we must do better, it's also normal but it can also boost us to do better on the next matches. This happens to us a lot, they have 2 chances and they score a goal. We have 20 and only one fits, we're not going to work on the finishing, we're already doing that. Just work, after a while it will unlock. It's not a physical problem, we have the ball, we have the chances, we have to continue to work. You have to go back to training, clear your head and continue working. What's missing? I don’t know, offensive efficiency… yes… but I don’t know”. Paris Saint-Germain will quickly have to find answers, moreover before playing three decisive finals against Salzburg, Manchester City and Stuttgart on the European scene.
Pub. the 01/12/2024 00:20
– UPDATE 01/12/2024 00:45
