Majority of PSG fans cried foul when club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi announced the sacking of fans favorite Laurent Blanc who had delivered six major trophies in his two years at the club. As if that wasn’t enough new coach Unai Emery seemed out of depth and incapable of doing better considering their early season inconsistent form including the 3 nil hammering by Monaco early in the league.
Fast-forward to the present and you can tell Emery is on the verge of making history after watching his side demolish the once indomitable Barcelona which contains world beaters and also the best attack in Europe for some time now with the likes of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar scoring goals for fun. Having lost the Copa del Rey final to Luis Enrique and his Catalonian side last season, Emery got his strategy spot on this time despite giving 19-year-old Presnel Kimpembe his debut on the night with teenage Adrian Rabiot also starting for suspended Thiago Motta in midfield. Emery showed every viewer who cared to know that one doesn’t necessarily need to control possession to beat the best teams in the world considering his Paris side had only 44 per cent of possession yet recording 10 shots on target with Barca recording only one at the end of the 90 minutes. The Hondarribia born coach showed that his treble Europa League consecutive trophies in Seville was no fluke as his French side ran out 4 nil winners on the night with Barca almost certain of their exit from the tournament unless they do the impossible by scoring more in the second leg in Camp Nou in a fortnight.
Though the likes of Angel Di Maria and Edisson Cavani both scored birthday goals, the result was more of a collective one with the players, coaching staff, management and fans all playing their different vital roles. Having scored over 100 goals across all competitions already this season and also beating Bordeaux 3-0 in the league this weekend, Emery has sent warning shots to all European top clubs as his side outperformed and ripped apart Barca from the start with a scintillating 4-3-3 formation which relied on athleticism, dynamism, massive attack and massive defense all at the same time.
With 25 games already played in Ligue 1 and PSG three points adrift of leaders Monaco, it is safe to say that it seems that the club is finally in the right hands after the Qatari owners have spent in excess of $750 million since taking over the club in 2011. For all there efforts and achievement at the Parc des Princes tonight it is safe to say that the “sky is the stepping stone” for the Parisian club.
Comments
Post a Comment