Less than a season after the departure of Kylian Mbappé, Paris Saint-Germain has rebuilt its squad and now boasts one of the most potent attacks in Europe. The problem now is, who should Luis Enrique start in attack for big UEFA Champions League matches?
There are so many great attacking players at Luis Enrique’s disposal. There’s Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Gonçalo Ramos, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Kang-In Lee. This collection of talent makes PSG one of the most popular football tickets on www.1st4footballtickets.com.
Given his current form (eight goals in his last three matches), Dembélé has to be in PSG’s preferred starting lineup. The Frenchman has been playing so well that if PSG reaches the semi-finals or beyond of the Champions League, there’s a real possibility that he could be considered for the Ballon d’Or. Dembélé typically plays on the right wing, but he’s shown lately that he can play centrally. For my lineup, I would keep him on the right wing.
On the opposite wing, I would start Barcola. The former Olympique Lyonnais attacker has 11 goals in 21 Ligue 1 appearances this season. He has shown the ability to step into Mbappé’s role and PSG really hasn’t suffered that much of a drop in quality. Like Dembélé with Achraf Hakimi on the right flank, Barcola pairs perfectly with Nuno Mendes on the left side of PSG’s formation.
That leaves the center of PSG’s attack, and it’s where my choice might be a little controversial. While I love Ramos and believe he has a massive upside, I think he is still better as a substitute. Also, Doué has shown flashes where he resembles Neymar Jr. in his prime, but the Frenchman is young and not quite ready for a regular starting role. Instead, my preferred center-forward is Kvaratskhelia.
The former Napoli man is traditionally a winger, but I think Luis Enrique will play him centrally as the rest of the season plays out. Recently, Kvaratskhelia started against Monaco at the Parc des Princes and scored his first goal in a PSG shirt. That goal proved that Kvaratskhelia can play centrally because he made a direct run toward the Monaco goal and received a pass from Barcola. He has an excellent first touch, fakes out the defender, and scores a typical striker goal.
I don’t believe Luis Enrique signed Kvaratskhelia to compete with Barcola on the left wing. Instead, Kvaratskhelia will play centrally along with Barcola and Dembélé to form an elite attack that should scare defenders around Europe.
