5 Things for PSG Fans to Look Forward to in 2016/17 Ligue 1 Season
A slow start to the 2014/15 campaign helped Lyon, Monaco and Marseille all challenge at the top for sustained periods, eventually succumbing to the power of Paris Saint-Germain.
This season, the dominating form of the Parisian giants blew away all the competition, no club stood a chance.
None of the other 19 Ligue 1 clubs could keep pace, with Laurent Blanc’s side finishing a massive 31 points clear and picking up their second consecutive domestic quadruple—sealed with their Coupe de France win over Marseille on Saturday.
In all honesty, the league title was wrapped up before Christmas, only mathematics stopped it from becoming official. They were not only head and shoulders above everyone else, but hips, knees and ankles, too.
Looking towards the new campaign, 2016/17 could be different for the champions. Changes on the pitch could offer an air of uncertainty, but there's no doubt that they will still be heavy favourites.
New faces, new challengers in the UEFA Champions League and life without Zlatan Ibrahimovic—it is going to be interesting at least.
Here are five things for PSG fans to look forward to in the 2016/17 Ligue 1 season.
The Evolution of Adrien Rabiot
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Going into the start of this campaign, no one at PSG was quite sure what Adrien Rabiot’s future would bring. There were even suggestions and rumours that his future lay away from the club, per the Telegraph. That all changed one night in the Spanish capital.
Marco Verratti’s injury against Real Madrid gave the youngster a chance in the first team, and the France under-21 international took it with both hands. He ended up starting 19 games in Ligue 1.
Although his red card against Lille in the Coupe de la Ligue final reaffirmed the lessons the curly haired midfielder still had to learn, he has done more than enough to back up his blossoming reputation.
Next season, the 21-year-old will have the chance to cement a place in Blanc’s starting XI. He may not become an automatic pick right away, but he will force the coach into acknowledging that Rabiot is a contender, not just a player with potential.
The Ascendance of Marco Verratti
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This was supposed to be the Year of the Verratti. The season where the Italian midfielder became the most important player in PSG’s midfield. It wasn’t to be, and injury curtailed his development and ascendancy.
Still only 23 years old, the former Pescara man only managed to start three games in Ligue 1 since November.
With his surgery in Qatar going successfully and his absence from the 2016 European Championships confirmed, the Italian’s focus will be fully trained towards the new campaign.
Thiago Motta’s legs are not what they once were, and PSG need a fully fit, fully inspirational Verratti back on the pitch. If they can do that and combine him with Blaise Matuidi and Rabiot, they have the nucleus of one of the best midfield trios in Europe.
The departure of Zlatan Ibrahimovic leaves a huge gap at the club. Verratti may not have his same stature, but he does have the ability to become as influential a leader.
Layvin Kurzawa at Left-Back
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No one should forget or underplay the importance that Maxwell has played in Paris since his arrival in the French capital, but next season, PSG need to look to the future.
His form and performances were enough to limit Lucas Digne’s time on the pitch, and rightly, he has remained first-choice ahead of Layvin Kurzawa this season. However, it’s time for a change. If Blanc wants the French full-back to fully fulfil his potential, he needs to play—and he needs to play when it matters.
Maxwell, if he signs a new contract, will still play, but Kurzawa needs to play the bigger games, the Champions League clashes. He needs to be tested. During the knockout games this season, it was clear that time was no longer on Maxwell’s side, the Brazilian struggled against persistent pace.
You are never going to fully know what Kurzawa has to offer at the top level unless he’s forced into those positions.
Also, it’s not like he is a young kid lacking experience—PSG signed him on the back of his impressive performances in Europe’s elite competition for AS Monaco. The side from the principality were good enough—with Kurzawa starring—to reach the quarter-finals. It’s not like PSG have progressed any further.
New-Look Challengers
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This season saw the club once again knocked out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage. It was a huge disappointed for their project, but PSG will bounce back.
It’s difficult for a club whose whole season is condensed down to four games in the knockout rounds, but it’s the situation they have built for themselves with the financial power they have over the rest of France.
Next season may not bring new challenges domestically. Lyon would need to continue to improve and Monaco would have to keep the majority of their players while also strengthening. PSG’s biggest challenges will come in Europe, and those challenges will look slightly different next season.
Manchester City and Bayern Munich will both have new coaches at the helm, plus Real Madrid will be fully under the stewardship of Zinedine Zidane. Plus, Barcelona will try to bounce back from their elimination—they will take no prisoners.
With Atletico Madrid, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Juventus and um…Leicester City bringing different challenges, it is going to be a trip into the unknown. PSG will have their own challenges, which is reason enough to be excited.
The Future of Uncertainty
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The 2016/17 campaign is going to be a trip into the unknown for PSG. Not since 1994 have they won a Ligue 1 title without the help of a certain Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swede’s exit this summer brings about a brand new challenge.
Someone else will have to step into his almost irreplaceable shoes and the club will need to look elsewhere for the help, salvation and guidance. There is no doubt that the Parisians will target a major signing, a big name player, but there will always be a period of transition at the Parc des Princes.
Can Edinson Cavani step out of Zlatan’s shadow and prove he is still the same player who moved from Napoli in 2013? Do they have the strength in depth in the midfield to truly compete in Europe? Can they continue to be as dominant without their Swedish talisman?
Blanc and his staff have a huge test this summer, and it must have an element of fear and excitement about it. There may not be another club in Ligue 1 that is capable of challenging PSG throughout an entire season, but a slow start will offer hope and pile the pressure on a Zlatan-lite PSG.
Pressure on the coach, expectations on any new marquee signings—it adds up to being a very intriguing season for the Parisian juggernaut.
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