PSG
PSG’s season goes from bad to worse: what is the problem at the French club?
PSG find themselves in a sticky situation: as Ligue 1 is no longer guaranteed, the fans have turned against the players.
In May of 2022, PSG went from a situation of disappointment to euphoria. Nasser Al Khelaïfi, in front of a packed out Parque de Princes crowd, announced the renewal of Kylian Mbappé. After a difficult year in which they won only the league, keeping their top player as the centrepiece of the project for two more years, bought the boss some valuable time.
The flame of happiness that was lit that day has, slowly but surely, been diminishing. Despite the fact that PSG changed both their manager and sporting director, announcing the arrivals of both Galtier and Luis Campos, one year on they have gone back to committing the same errors as before.
The crash began in March when PSG lost to Marseille and Bayern
The 1-3 loss at home against Lorient at the weekend was the latest catastrophe in the series of flops witnessed during the current campaign, and defeat number nine in 2023. They have lost five more already than in the whole of last year and the defeat to Lorient only served to highlight the fact that some of the people involved in the project, players included, cannot fall any lower.
The team’s crash began in March, when they lost to Bayern Munich in the Champions League Round of 16: two disappointing games that came after a loss to Marseille in the Cup, but the situation was to get even messier. Marseille’s win this weekend couple with Lorient’s result puts PSG’s rivals just 5 points behind them in the league, meaning that the domestic title is not a guarantee for Galtier’s side. Although PSG have, on paper, a favourable run-in, the attitude of the players means that nothing is off the table and at the moment, anybody can beat the star-studded squad.
The Parc de Princes, still without the Ultras, banned for using pyro, did not waste time in whistling the team. The fans are sick and tired of empty promises of conquering Europe, of undefined projects, of multi-million euro footballers who do not care, of a €729 million wage bill. Lorient smelled the blood and pounced, to little resistance.
Mourinho, Motta and Zidane all linked with Galtier’s job
The future of PSG is up in the air, unknown and impossible to guess, starting with the head coach. Galtier, despite constantly repeating that he is ready to take the team on for next season, has a lack of authority in the dressing room which could cost him his job. The fans, incredulous, have asked for him to be sacked for months. The club, meanwhile, do not want to admit that the walls are on fire and prefer to wait until the end of the season to make a decision.
On the horizon sit names such as Zidane, Mourinho and Thiago Motta, but given the current situation, things look murky when trying to imagine a potential candidate who would be open to taking on the role of leader of the world’s most difficult dressing room.
The players themselves are not responding, either, in a clear showing of evidence that suggests the project has indeed run its course. Messi, against Lorient, was absent. Verratti and Marquinhos, heavyweights in the dressing room, are examples of the lack of mental energy within the squad and Ramos, intent on putting out the fires, has faded given the lack of leadership in the team.
Is Mbappé going to leave PSG in 2024?
PSG, by paying Mbappé an astronomical contract, also bought time in their project planning. The French attacker asked for sporting guarantees in order to continue at the club, something that was not given by Luis Campos or Al Khelaïfi, who worries he may lose his star player next year. This summer, as is the norm, will be key for PSG’s future prospects. If the sporting management staff give Mbappé the assurances he needs, he will continue and maybe even sign a new deal. But we saw the same thing last summer.
Messi’s exit from the club looks like a genuine possibility. The Argentinian, signed to win the Champions League, has seen the mega-project of the Qataris fade into failure over just two years. At the start of December 2022, the World Cup winner agreed a deal in principle with the French club to continue, but the World Cup itself, added to the Champions League humiliation, the fan treatment and his desire to go back to Barcelona, all make his return to Spain more likely. If he does leave, a huge salary hole will appear on the books at PSG, one which they will fill with players that can work specifically with/for Mbappé.
The PSG fans are tired of Neymar
Ramos’ renewal is not official but it is on the way, and PSG will soon have to move towards a deal for Neymar. Although Qatar want him out in June, his contract (which runs until 2027) makes that all but impossible. His latest injury, in his ankle, took him away from the pitch in the most defining moment of the season... again. The fans, sick of his time on the sidelines, also want to see the back of the Brazilian. But the player is happy in Paris and is not thinking of seeing his contract thrown on the floor.
PSG are living through a constant cycle of disappointment. The upcoming transfer market will be do-or-die for the club but the message is the same one that has been churned out for years. If Qatar want success in Europe, their big objective for a decade, they must find a new way to spin their money into winning football, starting with their next match, as losing the title to Marseille this late in the season would spell the start of something disastrous.
