French giants Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) have had a poor run of form both domestically and in the continent in the last couple of months that have seen them lose eight matches since the year started, the latest being a 1-0 home loss to Lyon.
Although PSG are still comfortably leading the French Ligue 1 with six points clear of second-placed Lens after 29 matches, some of these defeats saw the club get eliminated from the Champions League, a competition many believe is the reason why the club have invested so heavily in recruiting world stars like Lionel Messi, Neymar Santos and Kylian Mbappe.
Other factors that are affecting the harmony in the club include the talk surrounding Messi’s future at the end of this season, as well as Mbappe’s recent outburst on social media about how the club is using his image rights.
These are some of the reasons why club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi sought and found an audience with the manager and his squad earlier today. Soccer Scoop has learnt that Al-Khelaifi flew in straight from Lisbon after the UEFA Congress and discussed with PSG manager Christophe Galtier after training at the Camp des Loges this morning.
After the training, Al-Khelaifi made his way to the dressing room and talked to his squad and although his talk with the players was behind closed doors, Galtier’s comments during a pre-match press conference could reveal it was all about the recent performances.
“The president came and spoke to us in the dressing room, and what is said in the dressing room stays in the dressing room. But it was important for him to be there,” Galtier told reporters, according to The Athletic.
“The current situation is unacceptable. We need to react. We need total commitment and focus on the result. When the players are on the same page and fully committed, we can perform well,” He added.
“I spoke with my players after the game, when we started our week training on Tuesday. I explained to them and asked them to show more commitment and show more personality. We also need to be more respectful of instructions during games. That relates to our set-up and commitment, which were not enough,” Galtier said.
PSG, who have suffered two consecutive defeats in the league, visit eight-placed Nice tomorrow, and they will miss the services of Marco Verratti, Juan Bernat, Neymar, Presnel Kimpembe, and Nordi Mukiele all out due to injury.
