Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino made a notable pick for the right wing position in his side’s Ligue 1 home fixture against Rennes, as midfielder Xavi Simons earned a start upfront.
Overall, Simons featured in 66 minutes of the match and did not go on to record a shot or create a goal-scoring chance for a teammate over the course of the match.
In the big picture, PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino sees that it was key to provide Simons with his first career start in Ligue 1 play in this match, which he touched on to Prime Video Sport France (via Le10Sport).
“Yes, it’s always important for us to have different players and to play them,” Pochettino said. “We have Xavi Simons, and he had to make his debut as a starter to show us that he has a place in the first team of PSG. Many players have problems at the moment, so it was an opportunity for us to change and try new ones.”
Simons has now totaled for seven appearances in all competitions with PSG so far this season, which include four in Ligue 1 play.
It will be noteworthy to see whether the Dutch midfielder may go on to earn another start in Ligue 1 later on over this season.
