We could talk about Paris Saint-Germain’s last few Ligue 1 matches (Toulouse FC, FC Girondins de Bordeaux, and Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace) or even discuss the recent form of former PSG great Jérémy Ménez in Liga MX. While those are all great topics, we’re still buzzing over the 2-1 win over Liverpool FC so we’re going five-wide on the latest episode of PSG Talking.
Hosting this mega-cast is Matt (aka @PSGTourist) and he welcomes Guillaume Delaporte, Mel Brennan, James Teague II, and Terry Philo. The crew discusses the magical evening at the Parc des Princes where the atmosphere was electric and the players on the pitch equaled their intensity. How did PSG pull off one of the biggest wins in recent club history? Who stood out and did Thomas Tuchel out-manage Jürgen Klopp?
No discussion of this game should start without mentioning the defense, which is a bit of a departure from typical PSG games. Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Thilo Kehrer, and Juan Bernat, in particular, stood out for their defensive efforts and Bernat even chipped in with the opening goal. Marquinhos was actually deployed in the defensive midfield and the Brazilian performed more than admirably. He may not be a long-term solution but on this night, he got the job done.
On the offensive end, Neymar Jr.’s second goal came from an absolutely beautiful move and it has to be said that PSG’s number 10 was outstanding throughout the night. He tracked back, got stuck in when he needed to, and created opportunities for his teammates. His performance against Liverpool is exactly why PSG broke the transfer record to sign him. Marco Verratti was the missing piece between the match at Anfield, which PSG lost, and the return game at the Parc. He controlled the midfield and transitioned the ball from defense to offense with impressive fluidity. If he can remain healthy, Les Parisiens have a great opportunity to do damage in the UEFA Champions League.
We also touch on the controversial topic of PSG being categorized as a “dirty team” due to their supposed antics on the pitch. Neymar, in particular, has been on the receiving end of criticism from the English media who think the Brazilian embellishes tackles too much and doesn’t play the game the “right way.” Should PSG try to clean up their image or should they embrace the bad boy persona? Do supporters even care?
Our panel of experts wraps up the show by giving their thoughts on the upcoming match against Red Star Belgrade, which will ultimately decide whether or not PSG reach the knockout stage. We also cover the Tuchel era thus far and whether or not supporters should be encouraged by what they’ve seen.
Thank you as always for listening and if you would like to show your appreciation for PSG Talk, we invite you to visit our Patreon page. Thank you and Allez PSG!
Music courtesy via Paris, Lisbon by Jahzzar licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 International License.
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