Dro Fernandez impresses in PSG pre-season, but the steep climb still lies ahead | OneFootball

Dro Fernandez has started twice for Paris Saint-Germain in pre-season and supplied an assist on Saturday, yet his elevation remains a slow burn.

Bought from Barcelona for €8m in January, the 18-year-old is being eased in by Luis Enrique. According to L'Équipe, the coach urged patience in February, describing this as a formative phase.

Fernandez opened his PSG account on 21 March in a 4-0 win over Nice, his sixth Ligue 1 outing, but in May he did not capitalise on three league appearances.

With the World Cup contingent missing, he struggled in duels during Wednesday’s 0-3 defeat to Mallorca, of Spain’s second tier. In Gothenburg against Manchester United on Saturday, a one-touch pass set up the 1-1 equaliser.

He departed on 61 minutes as Vitinha and Joao Neves came on, with Fabian Ruiz and Warren Zaïre-Emery yet to resume. After a brighter first quarter-hour than midweek, he felt more confident, though sustaining regular starts still feels some way off.

A successful year would mean regular, impactful rotation minutes and closing the gap to the level expected of this side. Assistant Rafel Pol felt the youngsters performed well, noting the steep jump from under-19s. Since January, Fernandez has been learning that.

Source: L'Équipe

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