PARIS: Paris St-Germain manager Luis Enrique lamented his team’s failure to convert chances in Saturday’s Ligue 1 draw with Nantes, despite dominating possession, and stressed the need for persistence.
After a lacklustre Champions League campaign has them in 25th place following a recent narrow loss at Bayern Munich, PSGs 1-1 home draw against struggling Nantes was another disappointing result for the domestic league leaders.
PSG did look to be on course for a comfortable win against struggling opponents when Achraf Hakimi gave them a second-minute lead on a perishing evening at the Parc des Princes.
However, Matthis Abline equalised before half-time and the visitors then held on for a share of the points.
Luis Enrique’s team dominated possession against relegation-playoff-placed Nantes to such an extent that they set a new Ligue 1 record, with 84.1% possession, the highest since records began in 2006.
“Efficiency is the key to football. It is very difficult to be efficient, to attack an opponent who is very compact in his area,” Luis Enrique said.
“Its incredibly tough to create as many chances as we did. But its clear that if you don’t score, it becomes frustrating and draining.
“In the end, there’s only one way forward: to persist, persist, continue trusting the players and the team, and keep moving forward.”
Goncalo Ramos’ return to the squad for a full match after an ankle injury at the start of the season was marked by an assist.
“I felt good, I managed to play the whole match without any pain and I think that from now on, we have to raise the level and gain confidence,” the Portuguese striker said.
“We are capable of working hard, with a lot of desire. We tried everything today, which was visible during the match. But now we have to think about the next match and work during the week.”
PSG will next travel to Auxerre on Friday for a Ligue 1 clash.
Earlier in France, former Argentina and Chile coach Jorge Sampaoli oversaw his first victory in charge of Rennes as Arnaud Kalimuendo scored a hat-trick in a 5-0 demolition of 10-man Saint-Etienne.
Kalimuendo, formerly of PSG, scored two of his goals from the penalty spot, while Ludovic Blas and Amine Gouiri also netted for a Rennes side who had lost their previous three matches.
The Brittany outfit, who appointed the ex-Marseille boss in early November after a poor start to the campaign, move up into mid-table thanks to the victory in Sampaoli’s second match at the helm.
For Saint-Etienne, who were handicapped by the first-half sending-off of Mathieu Cafaro, the heavy loss leaves them two points clear of a Nantes team sitting in the relegation play-off place.
Meanwhile, Brest bounced back from their 3-0 midweek loss to Barcelona in the Champions League with a 3-1 victory at home to RC Strasbourg.
Published in Dawn, December 2nd, 2024
