PSG/Chelsea: Mohamed Sissoko hits back at the critics

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·13 de março de 2026

PSG/Chelsea: Mohamed Sissoko hits back at the critics

Mohamed Sissoko, former midfielder for Paris Saint-Germain, offered a calm perspective on the club’s current period in an interview with Le Parisien. While many were quick to portray Paris as a team that had completely lost its way, the former Malian international mainly reminds us that a group under such constant demand could experience a dip without ceasing to be competitive.

Sissoko: “But I still see a team just as competitive”

“Have we found the great PSG again? We never lost it. Given last season’s exceptional run, with many trophies but also a very high number of matches and little rest, it’s normal for them to go through a more complicated phase. But I still see a team just as competitive, with spirit and, above all, quality players.

Sissoko: “They just needed more freshness, and they had it tonight”

What has changed? The foundation is still the same, nothing has changed. Defensively, they are very compact, the system is very clear, there’s no difficulty from that point of view. They just needed to regain some freshness to be more decisive and aggressive in their pressing and attacking in the final meters. Of course, when you play matches like the Champions League, against Chelsea, you want to push yourself further. But Luis Enrique doesn’t pick his matches, he doesn’t make concessions, he goes all out in every competition. They just needed more freshness, and they had it tonight.”

Mohamed Sissoko’s words have the merit of bringing some order back to a debate that at times turned into a constant trial against PSG. Yes, Paris went through a less brilliant phase, yes, some criticism was understandable, but part of the analysis also fell into exaggeration, as if a few more difficult weeks suddenly erased the structure, quality, and spirit of this team.

Vídeos OneFootball

Sissoko, for his part, neither denies nor dramatizes anything: he simply reminds us that after an exhausting season, a drop in freshness could weigh on the pressing, intensity, and clarity in the final meters. The performance against Chelsea doesn’t prove that everything said before was wrong, but at least it forces those who predicted a downfall to admit that this time, they jumped to conclusions far too quickly.

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