Any victory over Marseille is a significant result for Paris Saint-Germain and their supporters, but Sunday’s 4-0 demolition of their most fierce rivals held even greater resonance.
After full-time, head coach Luis Enrique stood on the touchline and watched from afar as his players went over to the Virage Auteuil stand, the home of the club’s ultras, to celebrate. There, the PSG squad joined in the celebrations, with academy product Warren Zaire-Emery — just 17 but with a performance so mature that “he may well be 37” according to his coach — leading the chants.
It was a moment that may land a few of the squad in trouble, after appearing to join in with offensive anti-Marseille chants. The LFP (the body who oversee French professional football) have confirmed that their disciplinary committee will look into all that happened at the game, including separate scrutiny of the discriminatory chants allegedly made by the home supporters about Marseille during the match.
On Monday, the French sports minister, Amelie Oudea-Castera, called for action to be taken following “hateful and homophobic chants in our stands” that “spoiled the party”. PSG said in a statement that they condemned “all forms of discrimination, particularly homophobia” and the club intends to “further strengthen its prevention work”.
Such chants would tarnish what was a big party, the sight of which has not been common in recent years at the Parc des Princes but, in just a couple of months, the page has turned.
Resetting the club project always buys time initially but there is always a limit to that; a degree to which form is tolerated no matter the focus on the long term. But this reset seems to have provided a sense of renewal on and off the pitch and it is moments like that can lift a season. Luis Enrique knows this could be emblematic of the direction of travel.
“A coach can only enjoy it when you see your players connecting in that way, and seeing the fans enjoy it,” he said. “We want to get wins that make the supporters happy. As coaches, we have to put up with the difficult moments and defeats. This was perfect. It was very close to the concept of dominating matches.”
A “perfect” night despite losing Kylian Mbappe to injury, too. Mbappe was clipped on the ankle in the eighth minute and, while Achraf Hakimi produced a show-stopping finish from the free kick that followed, it would eventually force his team-mate off the field. Mbappe had his ankle strapped and, despite struggling on for 20 minutes, he had to be replaced by Goncalo Ramos.
Luis Enrique later confirmed the injury was not serious, a promising report with a tough Champions League test away to Newcastle United next week. But Mbappe’s absence on the field posed an immediate test for his team. The early part of this season has hinted at an attacking reliance on the France captain, who had scored eight of the club’s 12 goals before Sunday.
They were completely unfazed by his absence.
(Photo: BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images)
Randal Kolo Muani and Ramos showed that not only can they find a way to goal, but they can work together. Ramos had spent five games trying to open his account for his new club following his move from Benfica and, with each minute that passed, the pressure only increased. But his eye for goal and his poacher’s instincts were undimmed; he headed home an Ousmane Dembele cross, and then finished a lightning counter-attack, led by Kolo Muani, to round off the rout.
For Parisian Kolo Muani, his first goal, and PSG’s second, etched this night into his memory. “It was a magical night,” he said. “Unforgettable.”
The performance revealed a lot about the evolution of this early-stage Luis Enrique project. Before this week, PSG had overseen the worst start to the Qatar Sports Investments era and much of that stemmed from struggling to break down low blocks and then being picked off, which Nice accomplished expertly.
To remedy that, Luis Enrique opted for something new. He started four forwards against Marseille, handing Bradley Barcola, the 21-year-old forward signed from Lyon, his first start.
It looked like a potential change in system but, in reality, this was a more subtle tweak to his consistent 4-3-3 set-up. Barcola just assumed the same role that midfielder Vitinha has occupied for much of the campaign when in possession. The difference was that he did not rotate into a central position out of possession, essentially having fewer defensive responsibilities.
Luis Enrique had identified that the spaces would be in wide areas against Marseille and that, for all of Vitinha’s midfield merits, Barcola is better equipped in one-v-one scenarios.
PSG were always going to dominate the ball, particularly against a Marseille side who spent the past week beset by a crisis that saw head coach Marcelino leave. So Barcola was not going to be required to make as many defensive contributions as Vitinha did against Borussia Dortmund in central areas anyway.
He was able to stay wide, and rotate with the central forward (initially Mbappe, and then Kolo Muani) in much the same way PSG always do on the ball. With Hakimi stepping out from defence and playing a free role in midfield, with licence to get on the ball and make sharp, inverted runs into the box, PSG maintained their 3-3-4 set-up in build-up (illustrated below with Hakimi in possession and Barcola wide left) and were able to pick holes in the opposing back five.
Hakimi has been a revelation in the early weeks of the season, and it is clear that Luis Enrique is elevating his game. “He is not just a right back but a midfielder and a forward,” said Luis Enrique. “He showed that in the previous game as well. It’s a delight for a coach to have a player of this quality.”
Zaire-Emery and Manuel Ugarte provided the security for any turnovers, with the latter throwing fire blankets on every whiff of Marseille threat.
An early goal opens doors and it means the opponent has to chase the game, and there will be more times this season when PSG find a resolute low block to unpack. They will be tested again but they have the reassurance now that there are goals in other areas of the team.
Defeating Marseille has become par for the course for PSG, but a performance that encapsulated the ideas of Luis Enrique to its greatest extent, without Mbappe and set to the backdrop of off and on-field unity, added a different dimension to the meaning of this Classique victory.
(Photo: Xavier Laine/Getty Images)
