PSG travel to Arsenal for the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday night, with Luis Enrique having named his travelling squad for the game on Monday
Luis Enrique has named his 22-man squad to face Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday night. The Ligue 1 champions travel to the Emirates Stadium looking to book a place in May’s final.
They have already made it past Premier League champions Liverpool and top five chasing Aston Villa in the knockouts to reach this stage. The French side have already been beaten by the Gunners in a league phase game at the start of October.
Boss Enrique will be desperate for revenge to set up next week’s return leg at the Parc des Princes. For the 2-0 defeat in October, Enrique surprisingly decided to leave star attacker Ousmane Dembele out of the squad.
The Spaniard has since insisted that decision was the correct one despite losing the game. In a sign that Dembele has restored himself in his manager’s good books, the Frenchman, who has been in remarkable form ever since, has flown to London and is expected to lead the Paris attack – as he did against both Liverpool and Aston Villa.
PSG announced their 22-man travelling squad on Monday morning. The 22 members, along with the backroom staff, flew out to London from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport shortly before midday.
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There were no surprise absences, with star men including Dembele, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Nuno Mendes, Bradley Barcola and Joao Neves all on the plane. The squad had been handed a day off on Sunday before meeting up on Monday morning for their flight across the Channel.
While he has earned the faith of Enrique and scored over 30 times in a season for the first time in his senior career, France international Dembele is now on a run of six games without a goal in all competitions. Enrique has confirmed he has injury issues heading into Tuesday’s key game too.
“All the players are available, and the same goes for Doué. We work on all aspects of the game, including set pieces, otherwise how do you think I would have been given my coaching license?” Enrique said. “They’re one of the best teams in Europe, and they’ve been doing a remarkable job with their coach for several years. We all deserve to be here. I like my team the most, that’s why I’m here. Some people will like Paris more, others Arsenal, it’s part of life.
“Arsenal and PSG are similar. A team capable of attacking and defending together, with top-level individuals like us without being dependent on them. Is Arsenal the best team we’ve ever faced? I don’t know, it’s hard to say.”
Enrique remains steadfast in his goal to finally bring the Champions League trophy to Paris. And despite the French side having a rocky history in pressure situations, the PSG boss is confident in his squad’s ability.
“The goal is to take another step after reaching the same stage of the competition as last year. The goal is difficult to achieve. This pressure doesn’t stifle us, however; we are ambitious,” he added.
“When we say making history, we’re talking about doing something that no one has done before us. The team has a lot of confidence, sometimes we’re less brilliant, but that’s part of life. On my days off, I’ve seen that people are transmitting positivity, wanting to see great performances.
“Has PSG never won the Champions League? Arsenal either. We mustn’t let that stop us from performing at the highest level; we must keep that in mind but be focused on what we have to do.”
PSG Squad
Goalkeepers: Donnarumma, Safonov, Tenas.
Defenders: Hakimi, Kimpembe, Marquinhos, Hernandez, Nuno Mendes, Beraldo, Pacho.
Midfielders: Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, Kang-In, Mayulu, Zaire-Emery, Joao Neves.
Forwards: Kvaratskhelia, Ramos, Dembele, Barcola, Mbaye, Doue.
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