Paris Saint-Germain had notable struggles over its five-match preseason schedule, and the team’s sluggish play carried over into the 2021 Trophee des Champions Final.
Reigning Ligue 1 winners Lille OSC finished with a narrow 1-0 win over PSG in this notable final. With a makeshift starting 11 filled with plenty of rotational players, PSG failed to score a mere one goal as it instead watched Lille come away with its second domestic trophy win of the calendar year.
PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino sees that his team had a much better showing than Lille in this fixture. But in the end, there was one reason as to why PSG could not string together a key win against its new Ligue 1 rivals, which he detailed further following the match (via PSG TV).
“I think we were the better team on the pitch tonight,” Pochettino said. “But we didn’t take our chances, and to win in football, you have to score. It’s a new season, I’m happy with my players’ attitudes, and we’ll be better when we have the full squad available.
“I never doubted any of the players’ commitment. We wanted to win tonight, we did everything to do so, and we played the players who were capable of doing so.”
The Argentine manager now looks ahead to PSG’s pivotal 2021-2022 Ligue 1 opener, which will come next week against newly promoted side Troyes AC.
