Paris arrive at La Meinau with another European night already visible on the horizon. Before hosting Barcelona in the Champions League, Luis Enrique has again defended the rotations that have become central to his management of a 23-man PSG squad.
The European champions face Strasbourg on Saturday at 17:15 in Ligue 1’s seventh round, only days after a 4-2 Champions League win away to Manchester City. The result prompted City coach Enzo Maresca to complain that PSG are able to protect leading players before major continental fixtures, arguing that the domestic demands in France are lower than those faced by clubs in other leading European leagues.
Maresca, whose side lead the Premier League and remain unbeaten there, pointed to Paris’ capacity to rest key names not only before their meeting with City but regularly ahead of Champions League games. His comments reopened the familiar argument over Ligue 1’s intensity and whether it gives PSG an advantage in Europe.
Luis Enrique rejects familiar criticism
Luis Enrique, 56, was unsurprised by the debate. The Spaniard said criticism is part of life at PSG, recalling that before his arrival the club were frequently told they could never win the Champions League because Ligue 1 was not strong enough. Now that Paris have won Europe’s top prize, he suggested, the complaints have simply taken a different form.
“That is the usual noise around a club like PSG,” he said. “Before I came here, people said Paris would never win the Champions League because Ligue 1 was not at the required level. Now we are winning, many people complain. It has become normal.”
The Paris coach sees squad management as an essential part of sustaining a challenge across every competition. PSG are seeking to add further trophies after becoming back-to-back European champions, and Luis Enrique has made clear that maintaining physical freshness for decisive matches matters as much as selecting the same side every weekend.
“There are always solutions to what happens,” he added. “For us, continuing to win is always difficult, but that is what we are constantly trying to do.”
Strasbourg may therefore face a reshaped Paris team. Luis Enrique rotated heavily in the previous week’s meeting with Le Mans, when Ousmane Dembélé and Nuno Mendes were both left out of the matchday group. With Barcelona due in Paris for PSG’s third Champions League league-phase fixture, further changes at La Meinau would fit the coach’s established approach.
