PARIS (AP) — Coach Luis Enrique is “super confident” Paris Saint-Germain is on the right track, even though the Champions League table suggests the team is going backward.
A semifinalist last season, PSG is in the elimination zone in 25th place out of 36 sides. Tuesday's 1-0 defeat away to Bayern Munich was its third in five games. There are struggles in goal while up front it has mustered a measly three goals as Enrique continues to play without a recognised center forward.
“I'm super confident. The position in the Champions League table is not deserved, we should have nine points,” Enrique said Friday ahead of Saturday's French league game against Nantes. “We can improve in every area, but I'm very optimistic.”
Still, the former Spain and Barcelona coach hinted at changes to come.
“All the defeats and all the games provide a coach with much information. Accumulating all of this will have an impact on my decisions,” he said, without explaining what needs changing.
“I could (say) but this would break the pact I have with my players. Dirty linen should be washed in private.”
In a rare admission, Enrique accepted he had “probably” made some wrong decisions.
“But I have to make my decisions before the matches,” he said. “It's too easy to wait for the rain in order to say it's raining.”
The immediate decisions facing Enrique are whether to stick with error-prone goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and how to reinvigorate misfiring forward Randal Kolo Muani.
The France international Kolo Muani became the third most expensive signing in the club’s history when he joined from Eintracht Frankfurt for 95 million euros ($100 million) last season.
Only Neymar and Kylian Mbappé — who joined for a combined 402 million euros ($424 million) in 2017 — have cost more.
But Kolo Muani has scored just 11 goals in 53 games and lost his starting place in the side.
Portugal's Gonçalo Ramos could be reinstated at center forward against Nantes after fully recovering from the left ankle surgery he had in late August. ___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Jerome Pugmire, The Associated Press
