Luis Enrique heaped praise on Paris St Germain debutant goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier for showing his personality in their Super Cup win following days of debate over his battle with Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Italy keeper Donnarumma helped PSG to a maiden Champions League title last season, but eyebrows were raised when the French club signed Chevalier this summer in a big-money transfer.
The cards of Luis Enrique were firmly laid on the table on Monday when Donnarumma was left out of their Super Cup squad for this fixture in his home country and, despite Chevalier being at fault for one of the goals in the 2-2 draw, the 23-year-old saved a penalty from Micky van de Ven to help inspire a 4-3 shoot-out win.
Asked about Chevalier, Luis Enrique said: “I must say I am very happy.
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WHAT A MATCH! 🥵🔥 pic.twitter.com/OXyUJtozpj
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“I am very happy with the way the game ended. It is very important for him and he showed exactly what he is made of, his character, his personality and things we ask here at PSG because we want him to get stuck in with the team.
“I am so happy with his performance, but also with the performance with regards to how he was helping the team. We are looking to get better, we are on the right track and I think we will be better this year.
“For a curtain-raiser, it was very difficult because everyone was talking about the situation, but Lucas showed personality, he showed good character and showed exactly why he is part of the Paris St Germain team.”
It was nearly a different story after Chevalier allowed Cristian Romero’s 48th-minute header to slip through his hands.
2025 #SuperCup 🏆 pic.twitter.com/5tPco05Gez
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PSG were two down by this point after Micky van de Ven’s tap-in six minutes before half-time, but they staged a stirring fightback with goals by substitutes Lee Kang-in and Goncalo Ramos to leave Tottenham crestfallen in Thomas Frank’s first match in charge.
“We are always going and thinking we can win every single match, even when we are losing, but if I have to be honest, I have to say Tottenham deserve much more,” Luis Enrique acknowledged.
“They played better than us, they were playing better than us until the 81st minute. Football is sometimes unfair. In this case, I have to say I am very happy for that but maybe it was unfair.”