Luis Enrique
Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP via Getty Images
As Liverpool prepares to host Paris Saint-Germain in the decisive Champions League last-16 second leg at Anfield tonight, the contrast in mental approaches between the two clubs provides a fascinating subplot to what promises to be a captivating European evening.
PSG enters tonight’s contest carrying a particularly heavy psychological burden. Despite dominating the first leg at the Parc des Princes in almost every statistical category – including an astonishing 27 shots to Liverpool’s two – the French champions find themselves trailing 1-0 courtesy of Harvey Elliott’s 87th-minute winner.
For Liverpool, the mental challenge is entirely different. Arne Slot’s men find themselves in the unusual position of defending a lead they perhaps didn’t deserve, with the Dutch manager himself acknowledging after the first leg that “the result was ours, but the performance was for them”.
This creates a delicate psychological balance – maintaining confidence from the result while recognizing the need for significant improvement in performance.
Luis Enrique has notably shifted his rhetoric in recent days, embracing the underdog role with statements like “We have nothing to lose and that makes us dangerous.
Ahead of the tie, the Spaniard was quizzed in the aftermath of the 4-1 win over Rennes if his full attention was on the Ligue 1 clash.
Enrique admitted that he lied about his focus, and that even before Rennes he was thinking of the return tie at Anfield:
“I lied to you. Of course, I think about Liverpool, like everyone else,” Enrique admitted as quoted by Culture PSG.
I’ve been thinking about the games against Liverpool for a while, since the draw already. But I also think that I have to highlight my team, my players, the mentality of all the players in the team, all of them.
“Those who play, those who play less, those who don’t participate. I think that to be able to compete, to fight for all the titles and to represent a club like ours, they have the right mentality. And it’s a pleasure for me to coach them.”
The likes of Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia were rested from the start of the game, although some came on as substitutes:
“I think all the players are fine. There are no injuries. The result is excellent against a team that gave us a hard time but we achieved our objective. The first leg leaves us no options: we have to win, that’s the objective. Nothing will change compared to the other matches, we play to win, but that’s the objective.”
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