The Ligue 1 champions have been busy revamping their squad over the summer, and Luis Enrique now has a much more balanced line up to slot Mbappe into
Kylian Mbappe has never really been specific about what, exactly, he wants to achieve at Paris Saint-Germain. There have been vague platitudes about Champions League success, and generally winning for his hometown club. But when it comes to European silverware, bringing home that coveted trophy, Mbappe hasn't really offered much insight.
He has, in fact, dodged questions on the subject, most recently claiming that: "I don’t know what PSG need to do to win the Champions League, it’s not a question for me. You have to talk to the people who make the team, who organise the squad, who build this club. I just try to do my job the best I can.”
It's ironic, then, that the latest U-turn in what has become a two-year saga regarding Mbappe's future may have left the French champions in the strongest position they have been in the Champions League for some time. PSG have spent 10 years failing in the competition, suffering from poorly-constructed squads, weight of expectation, and, at times, bad luck, to crash out of Europe.
This time, though, there is reason to believe that things might be different, that PSG could force their way to the top of the continental game. The competition's field appears to be weaker than in recent years, and perhaps more importantly, this is a PSG team that appears to be better constructed, defined by a coherent system that just happens to have one of the best goalscorers in football history playing off the left.
(C)Getty imagesAn imperfect player
PSG's Champions League failures aren't entirely Mbappe's fault. It, of course, depends on how you view the game. If you are of the mind, however, that goals ultimately win games, then Mbappe has done his part. Here is a player who, at just 24, has scored 40 goals in 61 Champions League games. If he continues to score at this rate — or improves — he might just end up the competition's all-time top scorer, usurping Cristiano Ronaldo. That 15 of those goals have come in the knockout stages should quell any suggestion that he is unable to perform under pressure (his World Cup final hat-trick should also do away with that notion).
But this sport is played on both sides of the ball, and that's where PSG's problems start. It is far too simplistic to claim that all of the Parisians' Champions League failures come from their attacking players' reluctance to run and press off the ball. Indeed, there are different ways of doing these things, and PSG have never been a furious counter-pressing side in the mould of Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool.
Still, for almost two years, the Parisians have had to make up for the apparent disinterest in the concept of defending from three players. While Lionel Messi had an excuse due to his age and Neymar was perhaps a write-off when it came to coaching, Mbappe never really had an excuse for his lack of legwork.
There is history here with Mbappe, too. France were forced to move him to central role in the latter stages of the World Cup due to his lack of defensive work on the left. PSG shifted to a back three under Christophe Galtier, partially to offer extra centre-back cover when their wing-backs were outnumbered.
For long stretches of the last two years, PSG have effectively found themselves playing 7 vs 10 with the ball in play, and Mbappe has to shoulder some of the blame for that. He is still a net benefit — we are talking about one of the best in the world here. But there are undoubtedly imperfections to his game.
AdvertisementGettyBenefits of a Neymar-less team
This is a radically different PSG squad to the one that crashed out of the Champions League in the round of 16 last season, though. Messi is gone, so too is Sergio Ramos, while Marco Verratti could soon follow them.
Meanwhile, it is a rather handsome coincidence that Mbappe's return to the fold came right around the same time that Neymar's move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal started to gain momentum. The pair's conflicts have perhaps been overblown, but there is little to suggest that PSG's star duo have ever been the best of friends.
There is, in some senses, a good reason why. Neymar signed for PSG thinking that he would have sole stardom in the side. Mbappe was brought in just weeks later — ruining Neymar's crusade before it really began. Since then, the two have feuded on and off the pitch, culminating in Mbappe sending sly messages through the press directed at his team-mate.
Neymar, too, is a divisive character. Like Mbappe, he is an immensely talented footballer on the ball. But he has always been disinterested without it, often found peering inquisitively towards the other end of the pitch, watching exasperated team-mates defend. Meanwhile, there are certainly parallels in the sense that they are both significant distractions off the field. In short, PSG wasn't big enough for both of them. And with Neymar gone, Mbappe has the limelight to himself.
Football has always been something of a vanity project for the France captain, more a sport he happens to be very good at than an overwhelming point of passion. Without Neymar around, the onus is on Mbappe alone to make things happen. That can only be a good thing for a player who has never shied away from the big moments.
GettyA rejuvenated squad
But that doesn't mean it'll be easy for the suddenly committed star. Mbappe's paradoxes will not simply go away. Luis Enrique is a good manager, who has a history of clashing with big names. That does not mean Mbappe will remarkably elect to start running off the ball, although that would be a dream scenario. Instead, he likely needs to function in a balanced system, one tactically fine-tuned enough so that any player — not just Mbappe — could slot into a left-wing role with ease.
It's a good thing, then, that PSG appear to have assembled their 2023-24 squad with at least something of an assumption that they would have to make do without their star man. The Parisians exiled him, in one of football's least convincing and shortest shows of strength. But they did enough during his month-long banishment to suggest their new-look side wouldn't need him, at least to continue winning domestically.
The signings look like those of a club looking to revamp and fine tune, not rebuild in the absence of their star man. In attack, they have added Marco Asensio, Ousmane Dembele, Lee Kang-In and Goncalo Ramos. In midfield, they have brought in Manuel Ugarte. At the back, Milan Skriniar has come into the fold — a contender for the transfer window's best value for money signing if he recaptures his old form. Add long-term target Randal Kolo Muani, and perhaps another centre-midfielder to the fold, and PSG will have enjoyed an interesting, perhaps even vaguely exciting summer.
There might not be an obvious tactical thread or archetype running through their signings, but PSG have targeted a mix of young players for big money and older heads on friendlier deals. This should be a hungry group, overseen by a manager who has won in Europe before. Even without Mbappe, there was reason for excitement here. Throw him into the XI, and this goes from a promising team to an excellent one — a good side with a razor-sharp edge up front to provide the goals.
Getty ImagesHow it can work
PSG have been here before, though. There have been summers with smart signings, hirings of tactically-adept managers, and unbridled optimism ahead of the season. The right names have supposedly been brought in, with good vibes abound. Throw in a fancy new kit, massive shirt sales, a big-money pre-season tour, and the Parisians are perennially dubbed contenders once more.
And it all ends in the same way. PSG usually win Ligue 1, breeze through the Champions League group stages, and then fail in embarrassing fashion in the European knockouts. There are, of course, different degrees of disappointment here. PSG lost in the 2020 Champions League final and fell in the semis the year after. Quarter-final exits, although far from ideal, are nothing to be sniffed at either.
The issue is, once spending skyrockets into the hundreds of millions, knockout stage exits shouldn't be accepted. Yes, other teams around Europe spend big — and invariably win the Champions League because of it. Still, PSG have more money than almost all of them combined. There is a difference between having money and knowing how to spend it. But the Parisians should have won the thing by now.
And this year, as with any, hopes will once again be high. In the past, though, the Parisians have thrown their cash at a collective of stars, with space fillers serving as connective tissue. As it turns out, there is only so much Danilo Pereira can do to make up for the shortcomings of those around him.
Now, though, there's something of a team here, with a superstar to give them an edge. And with some of the usual actors having not qualified for the competition or looking comparably weaker than last season, this could be the campaign where it all comes together.
Mbappe will almost-certainly be playing for another team in in 12 months' time. This is his best chance to win the trophy PSG truly want before he goes.