With Juan Bernat and Layvin Kurzawa injured, Mitchel Bakker stepped into the left-back position against AS Saint-Étienne in the Coupe de France final. In an interview with Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, the 20-year-old admits that he wasn’t expecting to start so soon.
“I did not expect to be already starting in the first team and that it will go so quickly,” said Bakker.
Bakker talks about how Thiago Silva played a big part in guiding the Netherlands international and telling him where to be positionally.
“Juan Bernat and Layvin Kurzawa were injured, and I’m basically the third left-back. In the final, I had a lot of support from our captain Thiago Silva. He was by my side and was constantly orienting me, directing me,” said Bakker. “It was special. I made a deal with PSG in January 2019, and I had to train with the first team and play with the reserve. But this team disappeared between my signing and my arrival. The intermediate stage had disappeared. I had to take the giant leap towards the first team all at once.”
Furthermore, he added how he didn’t play much in his first season with Paris Saint-Germain. Bakker said that he needed to take a giant step to show manager Thomas Tuchel that Bakker can be a vital part of the squad for 2020-21.
Heading into the Coupe de la Ligue, the young defender stated that Kurzawa would be back for the match. As a result, he will be backing up the veteran left-back; nonetheless, he can still see some action.
In the last part of the interview, Bakker goes into why he decided to sign with PSG. With AFC Ajax not offering him a clear plan, the 20-year-old decided to bolt to a new project.
“My three-year contract at Ajax was expiring, and unfortunately, Ajax did not have a clear plan with me,” said Bakker. “The offer I received did not express much confidence in me either. Paris is a magnificent city, PSG is a great club and, for a young player, I got a hell of a contract.”
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