Paris Saint-Germain return from the international break with two familiar names missing from the lights at the Parc des Princes. Ousmane Dembélé and Nuno Mendes have been granted recovery time and will not feature when Luis Enrique’s side face Le Mans in Ligue 1 on Saturday.
Key takeaways
- Dembélé and Mendes have been excused from PSG duties following heavy international workloads.
- The France forward is due back in training on Saturday, 10 October, while the Portugal defender will return a day later.
- Both players will miss Saturday’s home league match against Le Mans.
- Dembélé played all 90 minutes in two of France’s four recent fixtures and made further appearances totalling 82 minutes.
- Mendes completed three Portugal matches and was taken off in the 78th minute of another.
PSG prioritise recovery after international demands
The decision was agreed by Luis Enrique, his coaching staff and the club’s sporting management, with PSG opting to protect two players who have become central figures in the side.
Dembélé’s workload was particularly significant during France’s latest camp under Zinedine Zidane. He started and finished two of the national team’s four games, while also contributing 82 minutes across the other two matches.
Mendes was similarly stretched with Portugal, coached by Jorge Jesus. The left-back played every minute of three fixtures and lasted 78 minutes in the remaining game before being substituted.
A second break for Dembélé this season
This is Dembélé’s second planned rest period of the campaign. PSG had already given him time away from training at the end of August, when the staff judged that he needed to recover from a demanding previous season followed by his World Cup involvement with France.
His latest absence, alongside Mendes’, leaves Luis Enrique without two first-choice options for the visit of Le Mans. PSG expect Dembélé to resume training on 10 October and Mendes on 11 October, allowing both players to return only after a brief reset following the international window.
