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“It’s both beautiful and frustrating,” states the team's head coach. The Paris Saint-Germain manager has a complicated relationship with how his club's league matches play out. In PSG's matches, one team presses and the other sits back. “I enjoy facing defensive setups,” he asserts. “This is the game situation I know best. I am very respectful of how other teams play. Though unconventional compared to our style, I acknowledge and welcome it.”

Accepting low blocks is unavoidable for PSG; it is simply their reality, a result of the skill gap created by economic disparity. Their superior ability generally prevails and the resistance is overcome with different levels of challenge. However, this campaign has been more challenging.

Control of the Ball However Poor Results

The French champions have recorded nearly three-quarters of possession in Ligue 1 so far this season. Versus Nice last weekend, they had dominant ball control and made 760 passes, against just under 200 for their opponents. Before the break, Vitinha had numerous ball contacts – only six less than the complete opposition side – but PSG struggled to make their domination tell. At halftime, the visiting team's defender, whose close-range effort was saved by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, had nearly scored.

This performance wasn't isolated. PSG had drawn 75% of their recent Ligue 1 games. They had 71% possession against Strasbourg, but were dependent on a late tying goal from Mayulu to secure one point. And, despite having 77% possession against another French side in midweek, they managed just one goal and were ultimately held to a draw. Approximately 33% of the way into the season, PSG are ranked fifth for goals in Ligue 1 – trailing Marseille, Lille, Monaco and Strasbourg.

Strike Force Struggles

It is a result of the special treatment that PSG receive, but also indicates a genuine problem. Their forwards are not scoring. Ousmane Dembélé’s 29 scores last season helped PSG win Ligue 1 and the Champions League; Another attacker scored 14 goals in the league; Désiré Doué hit 16 in all competitions; and Their winter signing scored eight after his winter transfer.

Dembélé won the prestigious award and, while it is contestable that the French star is indeed the global standout, it is challenging to deny that he was not the best player of the last season. He's recorded merely five scores in 12 games this season. He experienced a thigh issue while on country representation in September, which led to a dispute between PSG and the French federation that has seen the relationship between the two institutions decline. Dembélé missed around several weeks of action as a result, but he appears below his best. After the win over Nice, he was seen holding his thigh. “The pain is intense,” he told club colleague.

Fitness Issues

Luis Enrique says Dembélé will be fit to face the German giants this week in the continental tournament but, while he regains his form, teammates must contribute. Unfortunately, Doué cannot help. The former Rennes forward was also injured in the same month. He was returning to his best when he was struck down with another thigh injury, which is likely to keep him out until next month. Kvaratskhelia is a valuable player to his team but he often excels mainly for the important matches in the European stage; he is still without a goal in Ligue 1 this season. Their current top scorer, PSG’s leading marksman in all competitions this season, has just one goal in his last eight games and is in a goal drought. Something of a purple-patch forward, the form will certainly come back, but he isn't the solution to be the goalscorer in this high-priced PSG attack.

Gonçalo Ramos got the decisive goal against Nice but will he keep his place in the team?

This was the role given to the Portuguese when he joined in last year. Their number nine reached the milestone of 100 games for PSG against Nice, but he has come off the bench in the majority of those appearances. Having scored 18 of his 38 goals after entering as a replacement, he has effectively embraced the role of the “impact player”, partly because of his ineffectiveness when selected, but primarily because of his coach's hesitation to begin with a traditional striker. “How come I score frequently as a substitute? Well, simply because I come off the bench more than I start,” remarked Ramos after the match.

Critical Moment

With the goals drying up across the frontline, the match-winning strike has given his coach something to consider. The centre-forward missed three chances before converting his next and winning the match, but the fact that PSG’s best chances fell to him is revealing. His finishing is instinctive and that is what PSG were investing in when they invested €65m. “He is a very important player for us because he is always ready for every match, regardless of his starting status,” said their coach. “Short cameos from the striker are valuable time.” The moment might have come for the super-sub to play a major part.

Domestic Competition Outcomes

• Rennes 4-1 Strasbourg
• Lens 3-0 Lorient
• Lille 1-0 Angers
• Nantes 0-2 Metz
• Toulouse 0-0 Le Havre
• Brest 0-0 Lyon
• PSG 1-0 Nice
• Monaco 0-1 Paris FC
• Auxerre 0-1 Marseille

Current Rankings

Position	Team	Played	Goal Difference	Points
1	PSG	11	12	24
2	Marseille	11	14	22
3	Lens	11	7	22
4	Lille	11	10	20
5	Monaco	11	6	20
6	Lyon	11	4	20
7	Strasbourg	11	6	19
8	Nice	11	0	17
9	Toulouse	11	2	15
10	Rennes	11	1	15
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