On Wednesday morning training at the Camp des Loges, most of the PSG players were hard at work, but they still had time to spare a thought for their teammates on international duty...

They may have been absent from training, but PSG’s internationals Siaka Tiéné (Côte d’Ivoire), Stéphane Sessegnon (Benin) and the French duo Mamadou Sakho and Guillaume Hoarau were on the tips of everyone’s tongues. “I’ll be watching the game against Belarus on Friday,” confirmed Christophe Jallet. “It will be really nice to watch Guillaume and Mamad’ in action. I’m really happy for them. It’s a great experience for them and it will help them at club level too.”

The two Frenchman were replaced at training by two of last season’s U-19 French champions side in Loïc Landre and Yacine Qasmi. ‘Of course they’re delighted to have been called up to the France side,” observed Mevlut Erding. “We’re also very proud that they’re representing us in the national team.”

Grégory Coupet can’t hide his impatience: “I’m going to be a keen observer on Friday night, firstly to see if Guillaume and Mamadou will be playing,” said the Parisian ‘keeper. “We’re all right behind them and wish them every possible success. All eyes will be on them, but when you play for PSG, it’s a little easier to deal with that extra pressure,” The former France shot-stopper even went for his crystal ball when he predicted “2-0, with at least one goal from Guillaume!”