PSG v Lens – Luis Enrique speaks out: injuries, Deschamps and preparation | OneFootball

Sunday, during the 4th round of Ligue 1 2025-2026, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Lens (5th) at Parc des Princes (kick-off at 5:15 PM, broadcast on beIN SPORTS). On the eve of this match, PSG coach Luis Enrique answered several questions at a press conference.

Enrique "It's the mentality of a real team"

How are you, are you ready to take your place on the bench?

"I've done the training season as usual. Of course, tomorrow I will be ready for the match against Lens."

With the absences of Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué, can Gonçalo Ramos have more playing time?

"Gonçalo has the mentality to adapt to this kind of situation. The whole team is ready to step up. It's the mentality of a real team. That's how we plan to face the upcoming matches."

There have been exchanges between PSG and the FFF, what is your opinion on this?

"Whether I say something negative or positive on the subject will not improve the health of my players. For me as a coach, my staff, the medical staff, the most important thing is the health of the players. We remain focused on that."

Enrique "Presko is a very important player for me"

Presnel Kimpembe is leaving PSG, he is a very important player for the supporters, what image do you keep of him?

"I love Presko Kimpembe, but that's life. He has been injured the last two years and it was really a shame. For that it was difficult, as I could not give him the time he needed. Presko is a very important player for me, the supporters, the club. Tomorrow will be a very important moment after the match for him."

Without Dembélé and Doué, you have Kvara and Barcola, but which one will be more comfortable occupying the right flank?

"I would also add Ibrahim Mbaye as well. A pure winger. But all twenty players know how to play on the left and right side, they are high-level players."

Enrique "We must control the things we can control."

We are entering the period where matches will follow one after the other. Will the rescheduling of the match against Lens change your preparation and team composition?

"At this moment we need to know how to manage these things. Each player has a different situation in terms of minutes played, etc. We need to know how to manage this because in three days there will be an important Champions League match. It's the job of the staff and the coach to know how to manage this. We must control the things we can control."

Enrique "I hope that tomorrow we will be ready to go for this victory against Lens"

What do you expect from this match against Lens?

"Normally the matches after the international break are always difficult. There are players who have been able to rest and others who have had to play. We know this difficulty. So I hope that tomorrow we will be ready to go for this victory against Lens. We know this difficulty and we will have to rise to the challenge."

FIFA should merge the two international breaks from next season, do you think this can improve things?

"I don't know if it will be better or worse. We have to think about the quality of play and for that we need the health of the players. We need to control the number of matches played, but it's difficult because there is economic interest. But any option that can improve this will be positive."

Enrique "Around high-level teams there is always a lot of noise"

What do you have planned for Renato Marin this season?

"I am very happy to have him on the team. He is one of the youngest goalkeepers, but he has a lot of quality with a profile that we like. He has physical, technical quality, I like the way he trains. For us since he does not have the opportunity to play with the first team for the moment, he will play with the U23 team."

Do you understand when Didier Deschamps says that zero risk does not exist?

"We remain focused on the match. Around high-level teams there is always a lot of noise, but we remain focused on the health of the players."

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.