"I didn't come here to win the Champions League. I came here to build a team." These are the words of Luis Enrique, 8 months before the start of the 2024-2025 season.
That was the start of his first year in the Paris St Germain project: the post-Kylian Mbappe era. PSG will no longer have a big ego and a big star. Instead, it is a new journey with a young, talented and easy-to- correct squad.
Before entering the Champions League quarter-final against Aston Villa, it can be said that Enrique's revolution at PSG has gone far beyond the plan.
Last summer, the 54-year-old strategist honestly predicted that it would take PSG 2 years to reach the level he wanted. Last weekend, when PSG celebrated their 13th Ligue 1 championship in history, Angers coach Alexandre Dujeux praised them.
"I think they are a great champion. All their players are attacking and defending at the same time. I was delighted to see this. I found it wonderful" - Dujeux admitted after Angers' 0-1 loss at Parc des Princes.
In just his second season at the club, Enrique has gone through many different era with PSG. Last season, the team was built around Mbappe. Although Enrique has tried his best to change this striker, work harder and become a team player, PSG has not been built in the way he wants.
Then, from August 2024 to early 2025, Enrique sowed the seeds for a new PSG version and carried out his plans. Enrique's priorities include: finding the right "number 9", teaching players to move with and without the ball, communicating how to press and counterattack, improving each player (specifically Vitinha, Bradley Barcola, Desire Doue and Willian Pacho). Above all, it brings a collective fighting spirit.
That is not easy, especially the harsh criticism he and the team have faced after a period of poor performance in the Champions League. It was not until the 7th round of the League Phase that they really affirmed their position in the knockout round.
However, while the former Barcelona coach kept changing his squad to find the right formula, he never strayed from the original idea.
"If I fail, it will be a failure of my ideas. I will continue to chase them. I'm getting there," the Spaniard said last November.
