Luis Enrique's bold prophecy about Mbappé at PSG and the Champions League as a witness

PSG will play in their second Champions League final in their first year without Kylian Mbappé . A season after the Parisian club lost their star player and Real Madrid didn't earn a single euro for him , the Parc des Princes side will face Inter Milan in Munich to try to win their first ever Big Ears . At the helm of the state-owned club is Luis Enrique , who, curiously, won his last Champions League a decade ago (Berlin, 2015, FC Barcelona-Juventus).

The Asturian coach inherited a club in flames after losing Messi and Neymar , hurt by losing in the 2023-24 Champions League semi-finals against Borussia Dortmund , with him already on the bench, and battered by the painful departure of Kylian Mbappé . However, Luis Enrique turned the loss of his best player and one of the best players in the world into an opportunity to build a signature team in his image and likeness.

" Without Kylian Mbappé we will be better. With Mbappé we had a player who went it alone . Having a player who moved wherever he wanted means that there are situations in the game that I don't control. Now I control everything ," warned the Spanish coach in the Movistar+ documentary. His statements sounded imposing at the time, but time has proven the Asturian right, and by far .

"Luis Enrique was not wrong"

"If someone scores 40 goals, we certainly won't close the door on them, but based on my experience, it's better to have four players who can score 12 goals ," Luis Enrique himself added at the start of the season. "I saw the coach say that without Kylian we'd score more goals, and he wasn't wrong. Danger can come from anywhere : from midfielders, defenders, and forwards," midfielder Zaïre-Emery confirmed in an interview with RTL .

In other words, PSG bases its strength on the core of its players , not on a single superstar, although it does have superlative players like Donnarumma, Vitinha, Joao Neves, Ousmane Dembélé , Fabián Ruiz, Achraf, Kvaratskhelia, and Doué. PSG shook Arsenal and demonstrated a vast superiority in the Champions League semifinals.

Dembélé, going for the Ballon d'Or

Suffocating high forward pressure , clean ball release, rational occupation of space, verticality, depth with their full-backs, and the overflow of their wingers have been the main tactical hallmarks of the Parisian team. With the Cup and Ligue 1 titles in their pocket, Luis Enrique's PSG will be looking for the treble against an Inter Milan side that stopped Barça in its tracks .

The Champions League final could also help determine the next Ballon d'Or winner. And this is where Ousmane Dembélé, chosen as the French league's best player of the season in the awards organized by the French Footballers' Union (UNFP), can make a statement. The French winger has 33 goals and 13 assists in 48 matches this season. It's his most prolific season on record.

The best Ousmane Dembélé has arrived with Luis Enrique after their link was on the verge of being cut short in October 2024. As reported by L'Équipe , there was a problem between the player and Luis Enrique that strained the relationship between the two . As a result, Luis Enrique decided to exclude Dembélé from the Champions League match against Arsenal . This decision was strictly disciplinary and sent a clear message to the locker room: no one is above the group.

" If someone seriously fails to meet the team's obligations or expectations and it means to me that they are not ready, there is no problem. I had to make a difficult decision, but I consider it to be the best one for the team . I would do it again 100 times more, but that doesn't mean it's irreversible . There is no problem nor has there been any discussion between Dembélé and me, it is totally false . There is a problem between the player and his obligations to the team," the Asturian specified.

A few days later, Dembélé apologized publicly and privately to the coaching staff . His attitude was well received by Luis Enrique, who gradually reintegrated him into the PSG starting lineup . The Frenchman responded with leadership, consistency, goals, assists, and dribbling . The rest is history, and both sides want to touch Champions League glory in the final. It would be the first UCL since Qatar bought PSG in 2021.