PARIS (AFP) – The doubts about Paris Saint-Germain’s (PSG) ability to remain a force in the Champions League following the departure of Kylian Mbappe have faded amid a stunning run of form which sets the French club up perfectly for their mouthwatering last-16 showdown with Liverpool.
“We will need to replace him with the team as a whole, and with maybe four, five or six new signings,” was the response of coach Luis Enrique at the end of last season when he looked ahead to life without Real Madrid-bound Mbappe.
The Qatar-owned club had just won a French league and cup double and reached the Champions League semi-finals in Luis Enrique’s first season in charge, with Mbappe smashing in 44 goals.
With the France captain gone, PSG spent significant money on four new signings in the summer, with Joao Neves, Desire Doue, Willian Pacho and Matvey Safonov all arriving.
However, the decision not to recruit a proven goal-scorer looked to be backfiring as they struggled in Europe while Randal Kolo Muani fell out of favour.
PSG found the net just three times in their first five Champions League games this season, as defeats against Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich left them in danger of elimination before the knockout phase. Yet their form in the last three months has been sensational, with the statistics speaking for themselves. Since the 1-0 loss to Bayern on November 26, PSG are undefeated in 22 games in all competitions.
They have won their last five Champions League matches, scoring 21 goals in the process, including 10 over two legs against Brest in the play-off round.
A 4-1 win at home to Lille on Saturday was their 10th straight victory in all competitions and kept them unbeaten domestically this season.
“Absolutely ruthless, at times magnificent,” was how sports daily L’Equipe described that display against France’s other remaining Champions League representatives.
Paris were outstanding in the first half of that game in particular, and those who have followed the club’s progress over the years since the transformative Qatari takeover of 2011 are now pondering whether the current PSG team is the best they have ever seen.
That would be quite a claim, given the players who have turned out for the club in that time, from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mbappe to Lionel Messi and Neymar.
“We are in great form, it’s all systems go,” said captain Marquinhos, at the club since 2013.
“We really rely on the collective. It has taken a long time. We have progressed step by step. But there are still things we need to improve.”
