After two defeats in their last three league games, Paris Saint-Germain’s lead at the top of Ligue 1 has been cut to just three points. Before Christmas, they were unbeaten but now their seemingly certain title is slipping from their grasp.
The 1-0 defeat at Rennes was damaging as Lens closed the gap in second place and Christophe Galtier was left frustrated at his side for failing to create any major chances. This was the first game since the World Cup break that Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe all appeared in and although the French superstar came off the bench, he could not influence the final result.
PSG have won eight out of the last ten league titles, and only Galtier’s Lille and Leonardo Jardim’s Monaco have beaten them to the Ligue 1 trophy in recent years. For many, the jibes of ‘farmer’s league’ come from the fact that PSG have dominated over the last decade and spent millions of pounds in the process.
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With the two best players from the 2022 World Cup at their disposal, and Neymar, it should be a walk in the park for PSG. but tactically since the break things have proved difficult. Galtier has chosen this season to play a back three with wing-backs, and two hard-working central midfielders. Essentially, it is a hard-working seven who get the ball to the fluid front three.
Before the break it worked well as PSG didn’t lose a game. However, against Benfica in the Champions League, they drew 1-1 twice, and it ultimately cost them top spot in their group. With the sides level on points, goal difference and goals scored, it was by fine margins. Only the fact that the Portuguese side scored more goals away from home gave them top spot, and a plum tie in the last 16 against Club Brugge.
It has left PSG in a tricky position. They have been drawn against European giants Bayern Munich and the Germans are favourites with Betfred to progress from that tie. It is the nightmare draw for a team like PSG. Julian Nagelsmann’s team are top of the Bundesliga having won their last six league matches before the long break, and topped a Champions League group featuring Inter Milan and Barcelona.
With an energetic, hard-working and quick squad featuring the likes of Sadio Mane, Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sane, Bayern are able to overpower their opponents on most occasions. Even when you take into account the attacking talent PSG possess, it is likely that Bayern’s XI of hard-working runners will knock them out of the Champions League.
That tie is to come next month, but it points to a huge problem for PSG. As we saw last season after the collapse at Real Madrid, the PSG fans are unforgiving when it comes to the Champions League. Despite all his success, Messi’s relationship with them still isn’t the best after he was booed on several occasions after that exit.
If PSG aren’t in the Champions League, they have nothing to play for. But it’s an attitude that could cost them the league title. For their fans and the club as a whole, the league is simply a given. It’s expected. A forgone conclusion before a ball has even been kicked. With that starting point, anything less is seen as a disaster and it puts Galtier in a tricky position.
His predecessor Mauricio Pochettino might as well have walked out the door at the Bernabeu and straight into a taxi. He stayed on until the end of the season and won the league title, but that defeat cost him his job. Now Galtier could face a similar fate in this cut-throat environment.
This season could still end in the club’s first European title. But it’s equally as likely, with the way things are going, to end trophyless. And no, the Trophee des Champions they won in Israel in August doesn’t count for anything.
They have a friendly in Riyadh this week, followed by a cup match against sixth tier Pays de Cassel. Their next league match isn’t until January 29 and then the Champions League fun resumes in February. A European title spearheaded by Mbappe, Neymar and Messi is the dream. But it could once again turn into a nightmare if their magical trio don’t start producing again.
