PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain head into the first leg of their crunch Champions League last-16 tie against Bayern Munich this week without the injured Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, and in crisis after suffering damaging back-to-back defeats.
The pressure is firmly on coach Christophe Galtier, given that these big European matches are what define every season for PSG in the Qatar era and their worrying habit of imploding on such occasions.
Galtier’s brief is to do what all his predecessors – most recently Mauricio Pochettino – have failed to do and win the Champions League after PSG persuaded Mbappe to sign a new contract and stay in the French capital last year rather than join Real Madrid.
They had just gone out in the last 16 for the fourth time in six seasons, the nature of their collapse against Real as spectacular as previous exits at the same stage against Barcelona in 2017 and Manchester United in 2019.
In past years they have been hampered by injuries at inopportune moments, with metatarsal fractures striking down Neymar ahead of a tie against Real in 2018 and ruling him out of both legs of the United debacle a year later.
The Brazilian was also hampered by injury against the Spanish giants last season, but this season it is the other two members of PSG’s all-star attack who have been hit by what French media have started to call their Champions League “jinx”.
Mbappe is in the middle of a three-week spell out with a thigh injury, meaning he will not play in the first leg but should be fine for the return in Munich on March 8.
Messi missed Saturday’s 3-1 defeat in Monaco with an apparently minor hamstring complaint, but it remains to be seen if the 35-year-old Argentine will be on top form for Tuesday’s showdown.
The post-World Cup hangover that PSG must have dreaded during their outstanding start to the season has not just impacted the fitness of the players who dominated the final in Doha in December.
Galtier’s team has appeared labored and has been regularly outfought by domestic opponents while losing four times in 10 games in 2023.
They simply could not cope with Marseille’s high-energy pressing game as they went out of the French Cup in the last 16 last midweek.
Their midfield sorely lacks physicality, and the defense is overly reliant on the ageing Sergio Ramos, with a lack of depth forcing Galtier to move away from playing a three-man defense and exposing his inability to find an alternative.
It is over three months since the group stage ended so it is easy to forget now how the Parisians missed out on top spot in their section.
They finished tied with Benfica on points, head to head, goal difference, and goals scored, but the Portuguese club came out on top thanks to their greater number of goals scored away from home.
Benfica ended up drawing Club Brugge, on paper the weakest side in the last 16, while PSG face a still formidable Bayern.
