A Progress Report on PSG's Squad Entering March International Break
Paris Saint-Germain have hit top spot in Ligue 1 for the first time this season at just the right time.
With just eight weeks to go until the end of the campaign, the defending French champions are finally starting to look like they want to win a third consecutive crown in Le Championnat.
Coming into the March international break, Laurent Blanc can take stock of the situation and be generally happy with the way his team have performed in recent weeks. Still in the fight on all four fronts—Ligue 1, UEFA Champions League, Coupe de la Ligue and Coupe de France—an unprecedented domestic treble or better is still a possibility.
It has not all been perfect; a 3-2 defeat away at Girondins de Bordeaux saw PSG pass up a great chance to go top last weekend.
Draws away at Olympique Lyonnais and AS Monaco, as well as a home draw with Stade Malherbe Caen slowed Les Parisiens down somewhat, but otherwise their form has been very good since a shock 4-2 loss away at SC Bastia back in January.
Here is a progress report on the squad entering this March international break.
Goalkeepers
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Salvatore Sirigu and Nicolas Douchez
It has been a solid last few weeks for both PSG goalkeepers, Salvatore Sirigu and Nicolas Douchez, with both playing a part in the team’s recent domestic and European progress.
The Italian has played in the majority of the games and has been as reliable as ever, while the Frenchman has been limited to domestic cup matches but has also performed well.
Aside from Sirigu’s questionable positioning for Bordeaux’s winning goal in the 3-2 defeat at Stade Chaban-Delmas, there has been nothing even close to resembling an error from either goalkeeper, and the Azzurri star remains Blanc’s first choice.
Right-Backs
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Gregory van der Wiel and Serge Aurier
It has not been a good last few weeks for Gregory van der Wiel and Serge Aurier.
The Ivorian picked up an injury in the 2-2 home draw against Caen and has been out of action since then, although he is on international duty with the newly crowned African champions this break.
To add insult to injury, Aurier was also handed a three-match Champions League ban for insulting referee Bjorn Kuipers via social media.
As for Van der Wiel, he has struggled for form, as he has done all season.
The Dutch international has found himself in competition with Marquinhos for the starting right-back role more and more of late, and the Brazilian was preferred for the 2-2 draw away at Chelsea.
Once Aurier is back with the squad and fit enough to play again, he could make the starting role his own if David Luiz pushes into midfield to make room for Marquinhos alongside Thiago Silva.
Left-Backs
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Maxwell and Lucas Digne
It has been mixed fortunes for left-backs Maxwell and Lucas Digne recently.
Last week, the Brazilian signed a one-year extension to his contract and will now remain in Paris until summer of 2016.
The dependable 33-year-old has been as solid as ever lately and his longevity is impressive, but his new deal was bad news for Digne.
The French international has struggled for regular minutes and has been limited to mostly domestic cup appearances.
With Maxwell seemingly here to stay for another season, Digne faces a tough task to win himself a starting role in the team.
Central Defenders
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Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Marquinhos and Zoumana Camara
PSG’s central defensive trio of Silva, David Luiz and Marquinhos are currently enjoying plenty of praise following a string of impressive recent performances.
The captain and Luiz were instrumental for Blanc’s men in ousting Chelsea in the Champions League—scoring a goal each at Stamford Bridge—and the former is currently in some of the best form of his career.
Marquinhos has also played a key role in that recent success, performing well when asked to fill in at right-back and impressing when given a chance in central defence.
Zoumana Camara has featured four times so far in 2015, and although PSG won three of those four games, they conceded six goals in the process.
Although he remains an influential figure in the dressing room, the 35-year-old looks his age on the pitch and Blanc will only call on him in emergency situations.
Central Midfielders
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Marco Verratti, Blaise Matuidi, Thiago Motta, Yohan Cabaye and Adrien Rabiot
PSG’s central midfielders were absolutely crucial in knocking Chelsea out of the Champions League before the international break, with Marco Verratti, Blaise Matuidi and Thiago Motta playing particularly important roles.
Although the latter has reserved his best form for Europe, Verratti and Matuidi have been in good form domestically, and the Italian—in particular—has caught the eye on a number of occasions.
Yohan Cabaye has been extremely unlucky, picking up an injury just as he was coming into form that has kept him out in recent weeks. The problem has also cost him his place in the latest France squad as the 29-year-old was not fit enough to join up with the group.
Adrien Rabiot has steadily continued to progress and is amassing plenty of experience domestically and in Europe. His good recent run was capped with two excellent goals in the 3-1 win over Toulouse at the end of February.
Wingers
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Lucas Moura, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Jean-Christophe Bahebeck
With Lucas Moura having been out injured since he suffered along with a number of team-mates at the hands of Caen just before the first leg of the Chelsea game, Ezequiel Lavezzi has been enjoying an extended run in the team.
However, the Argentinian has failed to impress in his team-mate’s absence with a number of wasteful displays. El Pocho made an important contribution in the Champions League, crossing for Luiz to head in the first equaliser at Stamford Bridge to take Chelsea to extra time, but otherwise has done little of note.
It is not enough for a player of Lavezzi’s reputation, and Jean-Christophe Bahebeck could—and arguably should—have been used more than he has been at present.
Unfortunately, the Frenchman was disappointing in the 4-1 win over RC Lens, and sections of the Parc des Princes crowd jeered the youngster in a poor show of support.
No. 10s
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Javier Pastore
As has been the case for the majority of the season, Javier Pastore continues to be a shining light in Blanc’s team.
The Argentine playmaker has put in some exceptional performances since returning from a minor injury lay-off, and a sublime goal in the win over Lens has highlighted his continued impressive form coming into this international break.
Strikers
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani
A hat-trick from Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the recent 3-1 win over Lorient sent PSG into this international break top of the Ligue 1 table. With five goals from his final two games before the pause, the Swede is suddenly back in form.
The 33-year-old’s performance against Lorient was one of his best of the season so far, and he will hope to build on it with Sweden and then in Le Classique against bitter rivals Olympique de Marseille once domestic action resumes.
Things are not going so well for Edinson Cavani, though.
El Matador is without a Ligue 1 goal in 544 minutes and has scored just twice in his last 933 minutes in all competitions. Perhaps the international break will revive the struggling Uruguayan ahead of the final part of the season.
Coach
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Laurent Blanc
Overall, Blanc has coped with a demanding schedule very well and has picked teams that have produced result in almost all of their recent games, except for the Bordeaux loss.
Le President has steered his team to being within touching distance of a domestic treble, and they are also close to making progress in the Champions League by reaching the semi-finals.
Having seen his stock plummet drastically over the first half of the season, Blanc has turned things around since the start of 2015 and is now in a position of relative power.
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