Thomas Tuchel

Paris Saint-Germain Finally at Full Strength

For what feels like the first time all season, Paris Saint-Germain returned all of their players to training on Friday as reported by Le Parisien.

Abdou Diallo participated in training alongside Presnel Kimpembe and Thiago Silva who had just returned as well. While it’s unlikely they will be ready to play against AS Monaco on Sunday at the Parc des Princes, it’s certainly promising considering the gauntlet of games coming up for Les Parisiens.

The 2020 marathon has already begun with resounding wins over ESA Linas-Montlhéry and AS Saint-Étienne. Now, PSG must face back-to-back matches against Monaco and then travel to FC Lorient, Stade de Reims, and Lille OSC to close out the month of January.

PSG manager Thomas Tuchel will have some tough decisions to make for each of those matches.

He is battling the desire to rest his stars with knowing they need playing time to perfect the 4-4-2 formation. Tuchel wants them at optimum fitness for the February 18 UEFA Champions League clash against Borussia Dortmund but he doesn’t want to risk unnecessary injury.

With Neymar Jr. going down at this point in the season the last two years, the spotlight is especially bright on Tuchel and how he handles his squad selection leading up to the Champions League match where his job performance will ultimately be decided.

I previously wrote about load management for stars like Neymar and Kylian Mbappé. I don’t think you can coat them in bubble wrap but I do think you can be strategic when it comes to when and where you play them. Unfortunately for Tuchel, holding either player out of a match is certain to bring questions from the media and maybe a sideline blow-up as we saw with Mbappé earlier this season.

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Tags Abdou Diallo AS Monaco Kylian Mbappé Neymar Presnel Kimpembe Thiago Silva Thomas Tuchel
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