Harvey Elliott's dramatic last-gasp goal left Paris Saint-Germain reeling in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Liverpool, prompting manager Luis Enrique to deviate from his usual post-match protocol. Liverpool had to endure a relentless onslaught in the City of Lights, with PSG unleashing 27 shots and forcing Liverpool's goalkeeper Alisson Becker into making nine crucial saves before Elliott's decisive strike in the dying moments.
The narrow defeat has evidently taken a toll on the PSG squad, who openly expressed their belief that they could reverse the 1-0 setback in the second leg last night, despite reports from France suggesting the team was unimpressed by the current Premier League frontrunners.
Enrique conceded that he felt compelled to "make an exception" and address his players immediately after the match, given the palpable disappointment in the dressing room. However, the ex-Barcelona coach is adamant that such an intervention will be a one-off occurrence and has thrown his support behind his team to stage a comeback at the legendary Anfield.
Enrique confidently stated: "I am pretty convinced that every single one of my players wants to play. We know what it means to play at Anfield, it is a historic stadium with a wonderful history and that is a huge motivation."
In a rare break of his golden rule, the manager disclosed that he addressed his team post-match following the Liverpool game, revealing: "Yeah, I have often told you why I almost never speak to my players after the game.
"It is my view, I believe there is no point to it because the players are just thinking about the result but after the game against Liverpool I made an exception because I told them they did absolutely everything to get a result. But I don't think I will be doing it again.
"I don't think Arne Slot has much doubts about our starting 11, I don't pay too much attention to what is going on elsewhere. No, I am not going to give away who is going to play or how but over the course of the two games we are going to see two of the best teams in Europe. Certainly I think whoever goes through tomorrow will go to the final.
"There is always room to improve but circumstances changes. What you do at home the fans support so we have to be good at what we know we can. I am optimistic when it comes to the team I have. We need to defend, attack together; keep the ball and we can create chances.
"Our aim is always to be better than our opponents, it is tough away from home. Most our results in France in Paris but still difficult away. Everything starts from playing football, we know areas we have to improve, we are focused on the football, we need to keep the ball and we will see how it develops."
This article first appeared on the Liverpool Echo.