Paris Saint-Germain secured a late game-tying goal from Gonçalo Ramos for the 1-1 draw against Stade Rennais on Sunday at the Parc des Princes. However, the game’s storyline involves Kylian Mbappé coming off in the 65th minute.
Manager Luis Enrique made a bold decision that surely resonated within the team as PSG trailed 1-0 and sought an equalizer. The breakthrough came when Ramos drew a foul, earning a penalty kick opportunity, which he confidently converted, leveling the score.
Enrique’s decision to pull Mbappé has RMC Sport pundit Jérôme Rothen believing that the Spanish tactician no longer has his hands tied. Rothen adds that there was a reason he kept the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner on the pitch, even in games he shouldn’t have remained in.
Perhaps Luis Enrique’s hands were tied by the management, in the sense of: ‘We don’t touch Mbappé to convince him to stay,’” Rothen said (h/t Le10Sport). “So it’s an open bar; he does what he wants in the hope that he re-signs. He will play 95 minutes in every match, even when he’s not good, which was the case until now.
“I understood before that he didn’t take him out because, at any moment of a match, he can score a goal, even when he is bad, and he has done it since the start of the year. Now, in his behavior and his personality, I think Luis Enrique is not there with his hands tied. I think he acquiesced in flirting with Mbappé. I think it was he who made this choice to have a special relationship with him.”
PSG has decided that no individual should hold a position higher than the club, drawing from their past experiences with Neymar Jr. and Lionel Messi. As a result, Mbappé wouldn’t be given special treatment, which explains Enrique’s quick hook this past weekend.
