Dortmund (Germany) (AFP)

After the hiccup in Dortmund (2-1), the Parisians are looking for the culprits: from Neymar, acid on the management of his return, to Thomas Tuchel, criticized for his tactical bet, PSG addresses his 8th return to the Champions League in a climate of reproaches unwelcome.

And yet, with a precious away goal, Paris still has a 52% chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, according to statistician Opta. On condition of quickly regaining the sacred union, and erasing certain unforgivable errors at this level, next March 11 at the Parc des Princes.

- Neymar in settlement mode -

"Unfortunately it was not my choice, it was the choice of the club, of the doctors, it was they who made this decision, which I did not like": so discreet in front of microphones in general, Neymar did not miss the opportunity to publicly castigate the management of his late return to the field.

The Brazilian N. 10, who has missed the last four games of PSG due to a rib injury, suffered from a blatant lack of rhythm despite his goal (77th), like his teammates Thiago Silva, Marquinhos and Presnel Kimpembe, also back from injury.

"It's hard to stay four games without playing," he added, at the microphone of RMC Sport. "I wanted to play, I felt good, but the club was afraid and it was me at the end (who) suffered".

Neymar, who could not play in the last 16 of C1 against Manchester United last year due to a serious foot injury, has been preserved for the past two weeks to avoid any risk.

Without preventing him from going to Düsseldorf to satisfy a promotional operation five days before the big meeting in Dortmund!

A sign of the psychosis surrounding the state of health of the most expensive player in history (222 M EUR in 2017), the precautionary principle has sometimes been taken to the extreme, like the last match in Amiens ( 4-4) disputed on Saturday ... with a majority of substitutes.

"If I had been in better physical shape, I would surely have played a much better match," Neymar told Brazilian media.

- Tuchel's lost bet -

When disappointment is at the height of immense expectation, languages ​​are untied on the press of social networks, to the point of insult. Like the brother of Presnel Kimbembe, author of a video insulting the Parisian trainer Thomas Tuchel, before pleading a "joke".

For his return to Dortmund, his former club (2015-2017), Tuchel tried a crazy bet: swap his system in 4-4-2, yet in place for two months, for an experimental 3-4-3.

Result, a collective without benchmarks dominated in large widths by the teammates of Erling Haaland and Emre Can.

"After a match, if the result is not perfect, it's easy to say it's our fault and we were wrong," defended Tuchel at a press conference. "Nobody knows what could have happened if we had played with a 4-4-2".

If he assumes his "responsibility", while recalling the infernal calendar of his team in recent weeks, the Parisian technician also pointed to the "fear" of his players, which has become chronic at this stage of the competition.

"We lack a little confidence (...), I don't know why," he asked. "We played with too much fear of making a mistake and it's not good."

- Suspensions and hope of "Ascension" -

An additional puzzle that could have been avoided, according to the words of the Belgian side in the Last Hour: "I did not know I was threatened ... It annoys me. If I had known, I would not have made this mistake ... "

Unpardonable at this level, this lack of rigor can however be saved by the wealth of the Parisian workforce.

With Thilo Kehrer and Leandro Paredes as possible substitutes, Tuchel also has the possibility of strengthening his attack with Mauro Icardi or Edinson Cavani.

With four matches to come, as of Sunday against Bordeaux in Ligue 1, the Parisian coach has all the time necessary to prepare for the "remontada" mission. It's a question of survival.

© 2020 AFP