Complete Report Card for PSG in 2014
Paris Saint-Germain have experienced a mixed 2014. The second half of their 2013-14 campaign was very good and the French champions secured a second consecutive Ligue 1 title and their fourth Coupe de la Ligue crown to become the most decorated team in the competition’s history.
On top of that, PSG also reached the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals for a second successive season and also won the Trophee des Champions.
However, the first half of the 2014-15 season has not gone according to plan, and Les Parisiens are currently third in the Ligue 1 table heading into the new year. Coach Laurent Blanc is under pressure to deliver better results than last term and that is proving complicated after a difficult start.
This is a complete PSG report card for the entire calendar year of 2014.
Goalkeepers
1 of 9
Salvatore Sirigu
All things considered, it has been a decent year for Salvatore Sirigu in the PSG goal.
The Italian managed to keep 21 clean sheets across all competitions and is comfortably first choice ahead of substitute Nicolas Douchez. The 27-year-old continues to be a key player for Les Parisiens.
Grade: B
Nicolas Douchez
Rarely called into action to replace Sirigu, aside from the obligatory promotion to first-choice for Coupe de la Ligue and Coupe de France matches, Nicolas Douchez has featured as much as he could have realistically hoped at the start of 2014.
One clean sheet in seven competitive games played across all competitions is not that impressive, but Douchez was on the pitch when PSG won the Coupe de la Ligue at Stade de France.
Grade: D
Right-Backs
2 of 9
Gregory van der Wiel
While 2013 was an excellent year for Gregory van der Wiel at PSG, 2014 did not quite hit those same heights.
The first half of the 2013-14 season was impressive, particularly in the Champions League, but the second half was disrupted by injury.
Since the start of the 2014-15 campaign, Van der Wiel has been searching for his best form and only has three Ligue 1 assists to his name all year. Despite that, he remains first choice at right-back ahead of summer arrival Serge Aurier.
Grade: B-
Serge Aurier
Since arriving in the French capital over the summer, Serge Aurier has endured a slow start to his PSG career.
However, there are signs he is growing into his role at the club after scoring his first goal in the 3-1 Coupe de la Ligue win over AC Ajaccio in December.
The Ivorian also provided a superb cross for Edinson Cavani to head home PSG’s second goal in a 2-0 win over Olympique de Marseille in Ligue 1.
Grade: C
Left-Backs
3 of 9
Maxwell
Ever dependable, Maxwell has enjoyed a typically solid and unspectacular 2014 in Paris.
Despite not excelling often, the Brazilian is so reliable. It is understandable that Blanc still sees the 33-year-old as a key member of his starting XI.
Maxwell chipped in with two goals and two assists across all competitions.
Grade: B+
Lucas Digne
Unlucky to be up against a timeless player like Maxwell at left-back, Lucas Digne has struggled for game time in 2014.
The 21-year-old has become a full France international, but has seen his progress stall somewhat at club level.
Digne managed two assists in all competitions for the calendar year.
Grade: C-
Central Defenders
4 of 9
David Luiz
Much was made about the arrival of David Luiz at Parc des Princes following his move from Chelsea in the wake of a disappointing end to the FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
However, the Selecao star has silenced many of his critics by being one of PSG’s outstanding defensive performers since the start of the season.
Luiz has contributed towards 10 clean sheets in all competitions and even managed to add a goal in the 3-2 home win over Barcelona in the Champions League.
The only minor negative is that his confidence looked to have been shaken towards the end of 2014 when Les Parisiens’ back line endured a rough period. However, overall he has been one of Blanc’s top performers.
Grade: A-
Marquinhos
A surprise figure ahead of Thiago Silva in this list is his fellow Brazilian international Marquinhos.
The 20-year-old has impressed with a number of mature performances and more than adequately stepped in to fill the void left when the PSG No. 2 was out injured.
Marquinhos contributed towards 14 clean sheets in 2014, also managing to add three goals as he demonstrated his useful eye for goal.
With Silva’s influence at the club under scrutiny at present, Marquinhos has shown Blanc that he can be trusted to form a solid central defensive partnership with Luiz if required.
Grade: B+
Thiago Silva
It has been a frustrating year for PSG captain Silva in 2014.
Not only did he come in for severe criticism because of his role in Brazil’s failure to win the World Cup on home soil, he also lost the Selecao captaincy and was injured for a large period of time.
Immediately after returning to action toward the end of the year, Silva had a positive influence and his partnership with Luiz had appeared impregnable at times.
However, that myth has now been shattered and the 30-year-old may well be questioning some of his performances towards the end of 2014.
Overall, though, the statistics speak in his favour. He's kept 16 clean sheets kept in all competitions and scored one goal.
Grade: B-
Zoumana Camara
It was something of a surprise that PSG opted to renew the contract of veteran defender Zoumana Camara over the summer, but the 35-year-old has arguably featured more often than he would have expected.
Les Parisiens’ No. 5 chipped in with a useful goal in the 1-1 draw away at Stade Rennais, but only contributed towards one clean sheet. PSG conceded in almost all of the matches featuring Camara.
Grade: C-
Central Midfielders
5 of 9
Marco Verratti
It has been an absolutely outstanding 2014 for PSG’s Marco Verratti.
The Italian international has been one of Les Parisiens’ star performers on a consistent basis and was integral to all of the success enjoyed by Blanc’s men during the year.
One of the midfield three that enabled PSG to be so formidable over the first half of the year, Verratti’s form has remained consistent, while others’ has not.
The pint-sized terrier chipped in with one goal and five assists across all competitions.
Grade: A
Blaise Matuidi
While the first half of the 2014-15 season might not be going the way Blaise Matuidi would have hoped, it is easy to understand why.
The French international was run into the ground in the 2013-14 campaign and was one of PSG’s most consistent performers, even towards the end of the term when everyone else was tiring.
That has not continued into the second half of 2014, but the 27-year-old also featured heavily at the World Cup between those two campaigns.
Matuidi weighed in with five goals and four assists in all competitions and was one of Blanc’s key men for the whole year.
Grade: B+
Thiago Motta
It has been a year of two halves for Thiago Motta in 2014.
Sensational for PSG over the first half of the year, he has ben awful in the second and is now having his future in the French capital questioned.
The Italian appears to have aged massively between the two campaigns and is far less effective now than he was last term.
Despite the loss of form, Motta still managed to bring three goals and three assists to the table in 2014.
Grade: C
Yohan Cabaye
Considering his good form at that time, Yohan Cabaye‘s arrival in Paris at the start of 2014 appeared to be a good move by both parties.
However, it has not worked out that way and the French international finds himself down Blanc’s pecking order at Parc des Princes with just two goals and two assists in all competitions.
Grade: D+
Adrien Rabiot
After an excellent start to the 2013-14 season, Adrien Rabiot’s progress was interrupted by a knee injury.
Despite recovering to play again that season, it took until this summer to fully recover.
That is when a nasty contract dispute started, which kept him out of the first team picture and in the reserves until November.
Now that his contractual situation has been remedied, the preciously talented 19-year-old midfielder has been back in action since November.
Rabiot managed two goals in all competitions in 2014.
Grade: D
Clement Chantome
After spending the first half of 2014 on loan at Toulouse, Clement Chantome returned to the French capital with little hope of featuring again for PSG.
The 27-year-old has actually been given more chances that he probably expected, but it is still not enough to keep a player like the France international happy.
Chantome will almost certainly leave the club at the end of the 2014-15 season, if not before.
Grade: D-
Wingers
6 of 9
Lucas Moura
One of PSG’s outstanding performers in 2014 was Lucas Moura.
The Brazilian has illuminated the first half of the 2014-15 season for Les Parisiens, while he was also extremely important in the closing stages of the 2013-14 campaign.
Lucas has taken on board coach Blanc’s observations regarding his style, and he has successfully added greater clinical ability to his game over the second half of 2014.
The 22-year-old finishes 2014 with eight goals and nine assists to his name, and the Selecao star has arguably been the French champions’ best performer in the current campaign.
Grade: A
Ezequiel Lavezzi
Like a number of PSG players, 2014 has been a year of differing fortunes for Ezequiel Lavezzi.
Over the first half of the year, El Pocho was fantastic and made a massive contribution towards Les Parisiens’ second successive Ligue 1 title. The 29-year-old also went on to star for Argentina at the World Cup in Brazil.
But the first half of the 2014-15 season has been poor from Lavezzi.
The South American has been a shadow of himself and is now out of favour. A January departure is a possibility and Lavezzi’s 12 goals and two assists across all competitions in 2014 should help to attract buyers.
Grade: B-
Jean-Christophe Bahebeck
After returning from a barren loan spell at Valenciennes, few gave Jean-Christophe Bahebeck a hope of breaking into PSG’s future plans.
Although the talented 21-year-old has not taken the first team by storm and is still largely deployed as a substitute by Blanc, the France under-21 international has been an excellent addition to the squad.
Bahebeck has scored three goals and three assists in all competitions from his substitute appearances.
The PSG No. 15’s impressive pre-season form earned him a new contract, and his excellent displays as a supersub could even see him handed more first team chances if the French champions continue to struggle in front of goal during the second half of the season.
Grade: C+
No. 10’s
7 of 9
Javier Pastore
The second half of 2014 has witnessed the revival of Javier Pastore.
After dropping off the radar so spectacularly in 2013, El Flaco gradually re-emerged at Parc des Princes and in the first half of the 2014-15 season has played some of his best football since joining PSG.
Four goals and six assists in all competitions might not sound like much, but seeing Pastore prove that his virtuoso goal in the 3-1 home win over Chelsea was no fluke has been impressive viewing.
Currently one of PSG’s form players.
Grade: B+
Strikers
8 of 9
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been the star for this PSG team since arriving and 2014 was no exception.
The Swede was integral to Blanc’s plans from the start of his reign in the summer of 2013 and played a major role in all of Les Parisiens’ successes in 2014.
Ibrahimovic managed to score 28 goals and lay on five more across all competitions and was accomplished despite having two significant injuries either side of the summer.
Imagine what the 33-year-old would have been able to achieve had he not been injured.
Grade: A
Edinson Cavani
PSG’s Edinson Cavani started the 2013-14 season like a house on fire and many expected that form to continue into 2014.
However, a series of complications relating to his private life appeared to wreak havoc with El Matador’s early 2014 form.
The Uruguayan has since rediscovered something close to his prolific best, but the 27-year-old still needs to do more.
Twenty goals and one assist is the minimum that many were hoping for in 2014, now Cavani will have to build on that in 2015.
Grade: B-
Coach
9 of 9
Laurent Blanc
It has been a big year for PSG coach Laurent Blanc as well, with Le President making massive improvements on Carlo Ancelotti’s team in terms of style and effectiveness.
However, the French champions have been unable to replicate the performances from the first half of the year in the second. Because of this, Blanc finds himself under major pressure.
Although Blanc can be a little limited and tactically naive at times, he has also done a tremendous job and deserves credit for it. The second half of the 2014-15 season will be a massive test for him.
Grade: B+
All statistics come via Ligue1.com, UEFA.com, Soccerway.com and Whoscored.com.
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