OM v PSG: De Zerbi lays down his rules ahead of the big clash!

In partnership with

Parisfans.fr

·19 September 2025

OM v PSG: De Zerbi lays down his rules ahead of the big clash!

This Sunday at 8:45 pm (broadcast on Ligue1+), Paris Saint-Germain (1st) faces Olympique de Marseille (7th) at the Stade Vélodrome as part of the 5th day of Ligue 1 2025-2026. In a press conference, Roberto De Zerbi, Marseille coach, spoke about this match and the Parisian opponent.

De Zerbi "We need to improve in the game and mentality"

"Respect for instructions and his game idea against Paris Saint-Germain At Santiago-Bernabeu, we were not the same as last year against PSG (defeat 0-3 at the Vélodrome and 3-1 at Parc des Princes, NDLR), it's another team, other players. The team is strong, Emerson, Pavard, Aubameyang... There are strong and experienced players. Then, the team must speak the same language, with the same game idea and the same mentality, we need to improve in the game and mentality. It's a journey, I hope we'll get there as soon as possible.

De Zerbi "The base, the structure will remain the same"

Nayef Aguerd and Hamed Junior Traoré fit or not against PSG We will see tomorrow and the day after (for Aguerd), we follow the necessary medical protocols for his health, it's the priority, and we'll see. Traoré was injured on Saturday against Lorient (4-0). In fact, he already had discomfort before. He will be unavailable for a few weeks. The Real match as a base for Paris The basics are there. If we want to speed up the journey, we can't always change seven or eight players each time. The base, the structure will remain the same. But for example for Kondogbia, three matches in eight or nine days, I don't know if it's risky. He's an important player. But we have other solutions, Angel Gomes, Vermeeren who is young but very strong, we will have to see Paixao, how he feels, how Aubameyang is doing, Aguerd we said it, Emerson who played his first match as a starter with us against Real...

De Zerbi "Make sure that 11 players reason in the same way"

How to make the players let go against PSG It takes the necessary time for the novelties to become habits, a mechanism. Then, no player is obliged to do what he does not want to do. With the ball, the choice depends on the player. Making sure that 11 players reason in the same way, it slows down the game at the beginning and it becomes innate afterwards. Against Aston Villa in preparation for example, with Rabiot, Rowe, Medina who was playing in his position, we were more natural. Now, it's true that we've taken a step back in this area."

De Zerbi plays the card of lucidity. He clearly wants to build a team capable of standing up to PSG, but he does not fall into the trap of grand declarations. In his speech, we feel the ambition, but also the caution: he speaks of "journey", of "mechanisms", as if to remind that all this takes time. Basically, he sets a course without making promises he can't yet keep. Paris remains the ogre, Marseille is still under construction. And he, rather than advancing, prefers to prepare his players to build a real game identity. No grand tirades to thrill the gallery, but a posture of patient builder. It's a simple message: we want to catch up with PSG, but it won't happen overnight.

Video OneFootball

PSG remains a fascinating enigma: even with absentees and incomplete preparation, it continues to impose its law. The Parisian squad is so dense that injuries or rotations do not really weaken the edifice. It's almost a paradox: where other clubs would sink with fewer frames, Paris keeps its power, as if its system absorbed everything. For OM and De Zerbi, it's an additional puzzle. How to prepare a precise plan against a team that changes faces without losing strength? The truncated preparation on the Parisian side reassures no one, on the contrary: it's when you believe PSG is vulnerable that it becomes the most dangerous.

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