Like every year, spring has barely started when Paris Saint-Germain is already playing its season. The Parisian club, leader of the championship, faces FC Barcelona on Wednesday April 10 at 9 p.m. in the quarter-final of the Champions League - a competition which has eluded it for thirteen years now and the start of the Qatari era (2011).

For PSG, it is once again a question of washing away the insult of the "comeback" of March 2017, when Barça qualified 6-1 for the quarter-finals of the championship. But seven years later, he has a major asset: the former FC Barcelona coach Luis Enrique, at the origin of this Spanish feat, has become the coach of the Parisian club. He knows the opposition perfectly, where he spent a large part of his career as a player and then coach. He was also there when Barça won the Champions League in 2015 with the MSN (Messi, Suarez, Neymar). 

“Luis Enrique brings this experience and this experience, in particular his management of pressure in this type of meeting, explains Arthur Perrot, journalist at RMC Sport where he follows PSG. And he has succeeded in setting up a sort of bubble around his group to protect him even if it means going to the front line himself."

“The collective is more stable”

"On the other hand, upon his arrival at PSG, priority was placed on the beautiful game while the European Cup was practically relegated to the background, it's a weight less on his shoulders", continues the specialist.

It is therefore surely with a slightly lighter spirit that the PSG players will receive their opponent on Wednesday evening at the Parc des Princes. Especially since, leaders of the championship with ten days to go, PSG arrives in the Champions League with an almost empty infirmary, apart from Presnel Kimpembe and Nordi Mukiele (victim of a concussion on Saturday), and an attack ( Dembélé, Ramos, Mbappé) increasingly effective. 

"The collective is more stable. Now, Mbappé can be put on the bench, life within the team is going well. Luis Enrique has control over what happens in the locker room, and that's very positive", analyzes Jimmy Algerino, former right-back of PSG between 1996 and 2001 who became a sports consultant.

There is nevertheless a little less certainty on the Parisian defense side. The club is without Achraf Hakimi, suspended, and several executives are returning from injury, such as Brazilian defender Marquinhos or Portuguese left-back Nuno Mendes. “These are players who come back at the right time, but that lacks guarantees,” believes Arthur Perrot. To fill the absence of Hakimi, Luis Enrique could be tempted to use his young midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery in the right-back position, even if it is not his preferred position.

“The people of Barcelona have nothing to lose”

Opposite, FC Barcelona is not the most flamboyant. Second in Liga, far behind Real Madrid, the team is rebuilding and relies on very young players, like Lamine Yamal (16 years old), Firmin Lopez (20 years old) and Pau Cubarsi (17 years). “These are players capable of mistakes. Against PSG in the European Cup, with Kylian Mbappé who has clearly targeted this meeting, it can be paid for in cash,” judges journalist Arthur Perrot.

For his part, Jimmy Algerino recalls that FC Barcelona can rely on experienced executives like Lewandoski and Gündoğan, while the younger ones can bring their enthusiasm: "You might think that a lack of maturity would make them thwart, but that can also allow you to be carefree and have incredible matches,” believes the former PSG player. Especially since Barcelona coach Xavi has already announced his intention to leave the club at the end of the season: “They have nothing to lose, so this match for them is only positive,” adds the consultant.

One thing is certain, the Barcelonans can no longer rely too much on the psychological effect of the "comeback" to impress their opponents. Apart from Marquinhos, the current Parisian starters all arrived after the fact. And if the return match will be played in Barcelona, ​​it will not be at the Camp Nou, still under construction, but at the Montjuic Olympic stadium. Luis Enrique will meet Xavi for the first time, who was his teammate for 6 years with the Blaugrana.

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