As he gives his assessment of last season – his first at the capital club – Luis Enrique naturally highlights the three trophies won by his team, but that's not all. "The first thing that I take away from last season is the three titles, but there's more to it than that; there were also a lot of new players, a new team of coaching staff and a magnificent new training centre. I think that was the first stage of a new project for the club. That first season was highly positive for everyone." The Spaniard is also quick to point out a factor that he considers to be essential to Paris's success: "Last year, the bond between the fans and the team was exceptional."
So, now what? After Les Parisiens made a successful start to their season with a 4-1 win away to Le Havre last Friday, Enrique discusses the next stage of a project that he is a firm believer in: "The next step is to keep going down this path by improving the squad. I'm really, really motivated. What I see and what I feel from the players is ambition; I think that we're going to have a very good season." In the coach's view, enjoying an even more fruitful campaign this time around will primarily involve setting high standards in training. "If we're able to train at a higher level, we'll be better-prepared for competitive football. For me, the idea is to turn each training session into a competitive game."
While he places great importance on training sessions, Enrique also relies on a tool that has been used with increasing regularity in recent years: video analysis. "The video room is one of my favourite places because I can communicate directly with my players by showing them areas for improvement. The players are really attentive and want to be informed. It's a very important asset for putting things right both individually and collectively and for sharing things with the players, but it also lets the players give you their opinion." To make sure that his team keeps improving, the Paris manager has been supported by a clearly defined transfer strategy on the part of the club's recruitment department. "We don't want players who come here just to do us a favour. It should be the opposite; we want players who are hungry, who want to come to a club as unique as Paris Saint-Germain, to a unique city and to a unique country and who want to write their name in the club's history books."
Enrique then gives his take on Paris's most recent signings, starting with João Neves, who bagged himself a pair of assists against Le Havre in what was his competitive debut for Les Rouge et Bleu: "He's a very high-level, intelligent player who is great at pressing and has a lot of energy." While the Gijón native is satisfied with what the new recruits have brought to the table, he is also able to draw upon a pool of academy players that he believes is strong. "I think that the team will be even younger than it was last year. We've got several players from the academy in our squad, young players that are the very essence of the club." The man in charge of the capital club's first team is intent on turning that youth into one of the cornerstones of the Paris project, too. "We want to see them lead the team in the future."
In fact, the future is precisely what drives Enrique forward. "We want to be in a position whereby we can fight for every title. We always want more. For me, as a manager, this is another year of learning. Once again, I'm leaving my comfort zone and trying to do things differently. That's what brings me to life and motivates me. The challenge of showing everyone that we can be better and of showing our fans an even better team, one that doesn't stop fighting and doesn't stop playing good football – that's my motivation."
Playing good football is the one thing that seems to remain at the heart of Enrique's philosophy from one season to the next. "You shouldn't focus solely on the results; I much prefer the way in which we win. If you look at our final game of last season, the win in the Coupe de France final, it kind of shows our mentality: to dominate our opponents. Regardless of whether or not we're winning, we keep attacking and we don't stop. I think that we saw that throughout last season. When it goes well, everyone's happy, and when it goes badly, we pick ourselves up and we try again."
The message is clear, and the scene is set; the 2024–2025 season is well and truly underway.
Check out the full video of our interview with Luis Enrique at 18:30 CET today on PSG TV.