Prior to the match against Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain’s head coach Luis Enrique made a puzzling decision—leaving the in-form Dembele out of the squad traveling to London.
As expected, Paris Saint-Germain lost the second round of the Champions League match with a score of 0-2 against Arsenal. Enrique’s move was truly self-sabotage, significantly reducing the team’s offensive power. It’s worth noting that Dembele has scored 4 goals and provided 4 assists in 7 games this season, making him a key player for the team.
It is reported that Enrique benched Dembele due to disciplinary issues. After the game, when asked if the absence of Dembele made things easier, Arsenal’s William Saliba answered straightforwardly, “I think we won beautifully today.” He added, “The coach told us to perform better in both penalty areas, and we did. When opportunities came, we seized them. Even when faced with difficulties, we defended as a united team. In short, we deserved this victory.”
Saliba also pointed out that Dembele’s absence benefited Arsenal. “To be honest, (his absence) did help us. Although they have other players who can step up, we focused on our own performance. His absence was indeed beneficial to us.”
Now, Paris Saint-Germain needs to quickly bounce back because they have a big match against Nice coming up, followed by the international break. On October 22, they will host PSV Eindhoven at home, hoping not to ‘challenge themselves’ again, after all, playing at home, they should bring some joy to the fans, right?
Is Not Using Dembele Self-Sabotage for Paris Saint-Germain? Saliba: His Absence Gave Us an Advantage. Author：Sports UEFA.Please indicate the source when reproduced：https://www.sportsuefa.com/football-world/43597.html
