PSG: “The first period was a nightmare”, admits Luis Enrique

His analysis of the match: “There were two very different halves. In the first, Real Sociedad were better than us, they were the best team on the pitch, they won the balls, we were not able to press because they played long and bet on the second balls at the drop-off . We weren't able to get the ball out from behind either, we lost too many balls and that means they were superior. A great first half for Real Sociedad. We were in difficulty. It's football, it can be tough. In the second half, however, we turned the situation around and the match completely changed. We pressed and were more efficient in recovery. We were able to get the balls out from behind and managed to get rid of their pressure. So, we found spaces. The goal came when there were only 10 on the pitch (Hamari Traoré was being treated on the sidelines, Editor's note). And that helped us gain confidence and win the game. La Real is a team that we know very well. They have played together for a long time and have very good players, a very good coach, a game that is as attractive as it is effective.”

Lucas Beraldo rather than Lucas Hernandez: “There was no physical problem (for Hernandez). Why Beraldo? You ask the question because you are journalists but I am a coach and my job is to choose players. I chose the 11 that I thought were the best to start with. And if I had to choose again, I would take the same 11 players.”

His big anger during the break: “I don’t know exactly what I told them anymore. (…) To be honest, I don’t remember (smile). Great chefs don't reveal their recipes. In the end, the credit goes to the players. They believed it, they continued to believe it. It's a game and I will never stop saying that. Nothing will happen to us if we lose. The other day (Sunday) the fans came to watch training, they were behind us, they said they wanted to see us brave and daring. Nothing will happen if we don't win the Champions League. Real Sociedad dominated in the first half, but you can lose if you play true to your ideas. If that's the case, the next day people get up and move on, you get back up. It's part of sport and life. But you have to stay true to your ideas. In the first half, I think we didn't take enough risks and against a team like Real, it can quickly become a nightmare... The first half was a nightmare."

Physical: “Not so long ago, I was told about a physical failure on our side against Brest (during the 2-2 draw between the two teams in the championship, Editor's note). La Real was perfectly prepared physically. And PSG too. And I'm being asked about a physical problem for Real in the second half? No. You need to analyze things in a deeper way. Each team is well prepared. But the match actually changed in the second half, we had more possession, we came out of their pressing better and the goal filled us with energy and confidence, with the opponents who suffered more, and that's normal when you cheeks at home. I prefer not to think too much about what we will face in San Sebastian because Real Sociedad are a very good team, with a clear style of play. With the added support of their supporters, they will be very strong.

What PSG lacked to play a complete match: “It would have been a different match if we had faced another team. It has to do with their level. We understood from the first ball how they were going to proceed (a long ball towards the attackers, Editor's note). We pressed them in their half but the ball quickly came back into ours and we started to have problems. In the second half, that didn't happen, we gained confidence and turned the situation around. It was really a complicated match. Since the start of the season, Real played the best half against us.”

The Vitinha/Fabian Ruiz change at the break: “The idea was to hold the ball better. Vitinha is more dynamic, with the ability to hold the ball without losing it. And the change has been positive. It allowed Vitinha and Fabian to show their best face. Warren Zaire-Emery played at his usual level. But more than a change of position, it was above all a change of mentality and ambition that we made in the second half. We gained confidence and we were able to turn the situation around in a match that seemed complicated.”

If the staff had identified a weakness of Real at the back post on set pieces: “No. I think they are a very high level team from set pieces. In fact, I think they are stronger than us in this area. They have great shooters and great finishers, but football is so funny... We opened the scoring with a set piece by Kylian Mbappé, who is not a great specialist in this exercise, but there is a good cross from Marquinhos to the near post and it always poses problems for the defending team. Plus, there were only 10 of them at that time because Traoré had just come out, everything helps in football!”

Also read: PSG: “We could have added a little more personality”, regrets Mbappé

If Real Sociedad surprised him: “No, I wasn’t surprised at all. They were pressing at six. Usually in Ligue 1, there are even seven of them most often. We lacked fluidity and confidence, we failed to find the right passes. I wasn't surprised but it doesn't matter, that's the beauty of football, you can sometimes make mistakes and everything goes wrong very quickly. You have to know the opponents, but football is dynamic, there are so many players, the pitch is so big, lots of different situations, and even if you know everything about them, a team can still concede a goal the same way 10 matches in a row. That’s how it works… That’s why football is the best sport in the world, it’s so unpredictable…”

The evolution of his game project: “Since we arrived here, you can see the evolution of the team. I like progression, it's in line with my idea of ​​the game. We want to be a team that is difficult to put pressure on. If a team chooses to press us high and take risks, we are able to bring the ball to the attackers in good conditions, even if this was not the case today in the first half... Real Sociedad pressed very well and with only six players, while maintaining a numerical superiority of four against three behind. They took a lot of balls from us, but I have to watch. Still, in these six months, there have been a lot of things that I like. Obviously we still have to progress and we're in this initial phase of the first season, but I think if there's anything I can say to the players it's that this follows the idea that I transmit to them or that I tried to transmit to them. It's the most enjoyable thing for me as a coach and it fills me with the most pride because it's the only way I have to prepare for my job and try to be successful. And if we're going to be eliminated, then let it be by staying true to ourselves, by not doing things we haven't worked on."

Comments collected at a press conference