In Luis Enrique’s new-look Paris Saint-Germain, the coach is the superstar

PARIS – In the new-look Paris Saint-Germain side who have made it to the Champions League final at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena on May 31, the superstar is no longer on the pitch but instead in the dugout.

In transforming a team into arguably the most feared side on the continent, PSG coach Luis Enrique has also revived his own reputation after being sacked from his previous job.

The former Barcelona and AS Roma boss was appointed in July 2023, after being dismissed by Spain seven months earlier, following their disappointing last-16 exit at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The PSG job appeared something of a poisoned chalice, with his predecessors unable to deliver Champions League success that the club’s Qatari owners desired.

The team were handicapped by the presence of superstars Neymar, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe all together, three great forwards who naturally did not much care for defending.

With the first two gone and Mbappe’s eventual departure inevitable, Enrique understood he would be allowed time to mould a team in his shape.

“We are in the middle of building a new identity, our own style and way of playing, and a new culture,” PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said early last season.

In 2024, they still reached the semi-finals in Europe before losing to Borussia Dortmund – with a domestic league and cup double also in the bag, it was a promising start for the new coach.

The problem was that Mbappe, with his contract expiring, was on the way out. Yet, Enrique kept insisting that PSG would be better without their all-time top scorer.

“If everything goes well, I’m convinced we’ll have a much better team than this year,” the 55-year-old said in February 2024.

It was hard to believe at the time, even less so after PSG opted last summer not to sign a new striker.

Enrique insisted on playing a style of football characterised by dominating possession as well as high-octane pressing. But his critics have accused him of being stubborn and rigidly sticking to one way of playing, even when it is not working.

“Luis Enrique had a very clear game plan and, when plan A didn’t work, there was no plan B,” ex-Spain and Celta Vigo forward Iago Aspas said of his former coach.

Earlier this season, PSG were dominating games but not scoring, and Enrique’s refusal to play with a traditional centre forward appeared mistaken.

When one interviewer questioned his tactics following a defeat by Arsenal, the coach’s response seemed arrogant and unpleasant. He said: “I have no intention of explaining my tactics to you. You wouldn’t understand.”

A loss against Bayern in November left the French side in danger of going out of the Champions League early, but the turnaround since then has been remarkable.

Enrique’s energetic young side suffocated Manchester City before seeing off Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal in a triumphant tour of England.

The decision to play without a recognised No. 9? No problem. Instead, he turned winger Ousmane Dembele into a lethal finisher who netted 33 goals this season.

As it turned out, PSG really are better without Mbappe, and Enrique deserves huge credit for that.

Now he is one game away from joining an elite group of coaches to have won the Champions League twice. His last success was in 2015, when he led a Barcelona side spearheaded by Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez to the title.

“Getting to a Champions League final is always difficult. All players and coaches dream of it, but not everyone gets there,” said the Spaniard.

“The job I did at Barca was extraordinary. Even if people said it was easy to win the Champions League with that team, it wasn’t.”

After three years at Barcelona, he had two spells in charge of Spain, taking a time out in 2019 when his daughter Xana died of bone cancer.

Now he believes the experience of those years has helped him become a better coach in Paris.

“I have more experience now. I remember before my first final, I was really stressed,” he said.

“This time I hope to transmit a message of calm. I think I have learnt from my mistakes and that has helped me get where I am now.” AFP