Will PSG retain their Champions League crown this season? The Debate

The good: Why PSG will retain their crown and win the Champions League once again?

1) The ability to rotate in Ligue 1 and lack of excessive minutes for star players so far

Perhaps the most vital point of difference between PSG and their biggest continental rivals is that PSG have the ability to rotate in domestic competitions without having to fear potential loss of form. This season an early elimination from the French cup to local rivals Paris FC has meant that their schedule is even lighter than usual, and PSG have now finally clawed their way back to the top of the French table, overtaking early front runners Lens and now will look to cruise to what would be a fifth successive league title. Furthermore, they are nine points clear of Marseille who they might consider to now be their main challengers for the title.

These are all good signs for the Parisians: they will look to increase that lead over the next few weeks in the hope that were they to progress as expected to the business end of the Champions League, they will have the advantage over potential opponents of being able to rest essentially their whole starting lineup in league games that coincide closely with Champions League encounters. This advantage proved vital in their run to the trophy last season, and could prove key again. Injuries to key players over the first half of the season have had the positive effect of meaning that those players have played far fewer minutes this season than key players for rival European giants, meaning that they can approach the final stages of the season with fresher legs.

2) PSG remain one of the most technical side in Europe

PSG have suffered with some well documented difficulties this season, but remain one of the most technically excellent sides in Europe. The team’s ability on the ball, from back to front, is truly frightening, and their positional rotations, that were so key last season in baffling European sides, have only increased this season, with attackers happy to drop deep in search of the ball, and midfielders also keen to move forwards into the front line.

PSG often look devastating against Europe’s very best, having already gone to the Camp Nou and won with a depleted team this season. If last season is to be a form guide, this technical brilliance only stepped up a notch in the increased pressure scenarios of the Champions League knockout stages.

3) Luis Enrique has unmatched experience in leading his side to Champions League success

Out of the other sides perceived as favourites to win the Champions League: Real Madrid, Arsenal, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Liverpool and Manchester City, only the latter boast a manager who can match Luis Enrique’s excellent credentials in the world’s premier club competition. Indeed, apart from Pep Guardiola, only Hansi Flick out of these side’s managers has ever won a Champions League, and unlike Guardiola and Enrique, he has not done so at two different clubs.

A dearth of late stage Champions League experience amongst the other head coaches on that list could prove to be a gamechanger were Enrique to come up against them in the tournament’s latter stages – with Enrique already outsmarting Arne Slot of Liverpool and Mikel Arteta of Arsenal on the way to last season’s success.

The Bad: Why PSG are destined to fail in their quest to retain the trophy?

1) Attacking bluntness looks more concerning than it did last season

One of the big features of last season’s PSG side was the fact that they had many players who could change a game with their goals. On the route to the final, not only were attacker such as Ousmane Dembélé, Desiré Doué, Bradley Barcola and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in scintillating form, but fullbacks Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes also scored vital goals, as did midfielder Fabian Ruiz.

It’s fair to say that this season, so far, has not been on the same level in terms of attacking prowess: Dembélé has been injured and has only shown flashes of last season’s brilliant form, Doué and Kvaratskhelia are both increasingly erratic in their dribbling and have yet to find their shooting boots this season and Barcola’s woes in front of goal have been well documented. The goals from other areas of the pitch have also dried up: with last week’s frustrating draw against Newcastle typifying the lack of finishing excellence that has plagued PSG all year. This is something that will have to change if PSG want to go far in the Champions League.

2) A defensive triangle that has been broken up

Another key feature of last season’s Champions League glory was the defensive solidity of Marquinhos and Willian Pacho at centre-back, along with Gianluigi Donnarumma’s brilliance in goal. This defensive triangle was one of PSG’s strongest points, but has now been broken up, with Donnarumma being sold and replaced with Lucas Chevalier, whose poor form has cost PSG on a number of occasions so far this season (including in defeats to Marseille in the Ligue 1, and to Sporting in the Champions League). Chevalier has even lost his place in the team, with Matvey Safonov being brought in to replace him, but there are questions about whether either of these keepers have the quality to be Champions League winning starters.

As for the two centre backs, Willian Pacho has been mostly excellent, but Marquinhos has looked more error prone than ever, with new signing Illia Zabarnyi often deputising for the Brazilian club captain. If PSG are to progress past the biggest European sides, they’re going to have to pick a goalkeeper and stick with him, and find a stable centre back partnership for the big European nights.

3) Enrique’s third season issues

Let’s wind the clock back to 2017. After two hugely successful years at Barcelona in which the Catalans won a Champions League and two La Liga titles, Luis Enrique’s third season at the Spanish club turned out to be something of an anti-climax: Barcelona came second in La Liga to Real Madrid, and despite completing the legendary Remontada comeback vs PSG in the Champions League, crashed out fairly limply in the next round vs Juventus, without scoring a goal.

Indeed, that final season at Barcelona has concerning parallels with his current season at PSG: both of them have seen Enrique change his style in the face of injuries and poor form and there is a sense in both occasions that Enrique’s football, brilliant as it is, cannot be played for three years consistently due to its frenetic tempo and high octane nature. This is why the question of rotation is so imperative, and must be practiced by PSG in order to avoid the burnout that eventually sunk Enrique’s previous club side.