Luis Enrique’s PSG had a slow start to their Champions League campaign, but there is little doubt they have clicked into gear.
This year’s iteration of Luis Enrique’s side are more cohesive, coordinated and coherent than they have been for many years — in and out of possession. While Villa did give them a scare in their second-leg quarter-final clash with their direct attacks, PSG were deserving winners.
Much like Barcelona, PSG have a blend of technical quality with devastating pace when working the ball through the thirds.
In Joao Neves, Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz, they have midfield control, which allows any one of Ousmane Dembele, Bradley Barcola, Desire Doue or Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to cause mayhem in the forward line.
Those attackers will frequently rotate across the pitch, popping up in different positions to prevent the opposition from tracking them. No player personifies such rotation as Dembele, whose 32 goals in all competitions has seen him explode as a clinical goalscorer this season.
Where previously PSG’s star-studded line-up would lack the requisite tactical discipline at the latter stages of the competition, this version feels like a proper team.
It was 10 seasons ago that Luis Enrique won an incredible treble with a Barcelona side that played exactly in his image. A decade on, there is every chance he can repeat the feat.
