PSG preparing for 'emotional' reunion with Messi at Club World Cup
Argentine great Messi joined PSG in 2021 from Barcelona, where Luis Enrique had coached him and several other current Inter Miami players.
The forward departed in 2023, the same summer the Spaniard arrived at PSG, having won two Ligue 1 titles but failed to bring the French club the Champions League triumph they craved.
Luis Enrique eventually led PSG to European success this season as they won the trophy for the first time by thrashing Inter Milan on May 31.
"I think the game in an emotional sense is special for me, without a doubt, for the club too and the players who have been here with Messi," Luis Enrique told a news conference Saturday.
The coach said he was also excited about facing Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Inter Miami boss Javier Mascherano, all of whom he coached at Barcelona as they won the treble in 2015.
"It's beautiful to see these players, who are more than just players for me, it will be special before and after the game," he continued ahead of the match in Atlanta.
Luis Enrique said Messi's presence would be a motivating factor for his PSG side, who are one of the leading favourites to win the competition.
"If we can't get the ball off them it won't look good for us, because Busquets is still the same, Lionel Messi with the ball is unique," he said.
"Luis Suarez, you saw the last goal he scored... and on top of that they have a coach like Mascherano...
"For us it's very motivating. We won the Champions League recently, but for us we have a lot of hunger still to show we have room to improve, that we want to compete.
"There's no better stage to compete than in this marvellous stadium, facing a team in which there is a man who is called Leo Messi, who is a revered figure not just for Barca fans, but people who enjoy him as a player."
No 'slip-ups'
Luis Enrique said star PSG forward Ousmane Dembele had trained this week but he would "take no risks" with the French winger for the last-16 clash at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
After Botafogo stunned PSG in the group stage and Inter Miami surprised with a 2-1 win over Porto, Luis Enrique called on his players to maintain their concentration.
"When you play in these type of competitions, and I know it perfectly well from coaching the Spanish national team, you cannot slip up whatsoever," said Luis Enrique.
"You cannot pause, you cannot be excessively confident, you can't do anything wrong because 90 minutes go by very quickly, and I think it's important that from the start we try and make our mark, impose our game and that's our objective."
The coach said the way to try and shackle Messi was collectively, rather than individually.
"Messi can dribble (past) any player," added Luis Enrique.
© 2025 AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
42 minutes ago
- France 24
Hamilton salutes Ferrari for 'mega-progress' with updates
"That's mega-progress for us as a team today," said the seven-time champion. "Thanks to all the guys at the factory for the upgrades this weekend which looked only small on paper, but were massive for us in performance. "We're not a minute down on McLaren and that's positive and I am happy with it even if I am still struggling with the balance of the car in the race. "We keep working at it and we made progress this weekend and we found a problem with my brakes and that's positive too. So we are improving and everyone in the team is happier. "And we were much calmer and more methodical too so I am proud of them for that." Leclerc said: "We are working in the right direction and our upgrades helped us to close the gap. But it is still a significant gap to McLaren but we had a positive weekend overall and we maximised our potential." Ferraris success behind the two McLarens of race victor Lando Norris and championship leader Oscar Piastri enabled them to overtake Mercedes in the constructors title race and move up to second. There were smiles too at Sauber and Aston Martin after Gabriel Bortoleto and two-time champion Fernando Alonso respectively finished seventh and eighth. It was Brazilian Bortoleto's first points scoring finish in Formula One and his delight was shared by Alonso who held him off in the closing laps – because the Spaniard is also his manager. Alonso was the first to congratulate him with a hug after the race. © 2025 AFP
France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Saudis the next test for the new version of 'Pepball'
But as the tournament moves towards the business end, FIFA's new competition is also providing the opportunity to see one of the game's greatest coaches in the midst of rebuilding and recreating his dynasty. Pep Guardiola's Manchester City have won six of the last eight Premier League titles along with a host of Cups including the 2023 Champions League. But last year they looked like an empire in decline, finishing 13 points behind Liverpool with performances that were even less inspiring then the results they generated. At times it felt like the end of the Guardiola era but the Spaniard has set about re-building his team and the 5-2 demolition of Juventus on Thursday indicated the process is moving along swiftly and successfully. "I'm really pleased because the most important thing is the players have to realise what we have to do to get back to what we were the last decade," said Guardiola. It is tempting to view the City rebuild project purely in terms of personnel and certainly astutely recruited new arrivals Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki in midfield and Rayan Ait-Nouri at left-back showed against Juve that they have the profiles to fit into the City mould immediately. But after success built on his trademark relentlessly dominant possession football, is Guardiola also undergoing a change in his approach? Overloads Certainly, against the Italians - and despite the Florida heat -- City played at a high tempo and with an aggressive, attacking intent, particularly down the flanks. With the two full-backs, Matheus Nunes and Ait-Nouri, pushing forward in support of wingers Savinho and Jeremy Doku, City created overloads in the wide areas that Juve struggled to cope with. Since the arrival of centre-forward Erling Haaland in 2022, City have evolved away from near constant short-passing towards a more mixed approach and the willingness to go long, even when Omar Marmoush led the line, adds another dimension. It was noticeable that the City coach was quick to praise his goalkeeper for his accurate long passes to his strikers. "Ederson was an incredible quarterback, making incredible long balls for Omar and Erling, and especially after we had the patience to make a lot of passes to be calm," he said. Perhaps the reports of the death of 'Pepball' were greatly exaggerated? Guardiola's principles, forged at Barcelona, remain in place but they are evolving and adapting to a game where relentless pressing, as well as high-speed passing are essential -- as Luis Enrique's Paris Saint-Germain showed in their triumphant Champions League campaign. It would be interesting to watch City evolve in pre-season friendlies but it is even more instructive to see them do it in a competitive environment. Saudi club Al-Hilal may not have the history of City's usual rivals, but the team coached by Italian Simone Inzaghi, were unbeaten in the group stage drawing with Real Madrid and Salzburg and beating Mexico's Pachuca. Their defence features former City full-back Joao Cancelo and ex-Napoli centre-half Kalidou Koulibaly while Portugal international Ruben Neves brings control and quality to their midfield. They will set out, like so many teams in Europe, to frustrate City and will hope to do a better job at that task than Juventus. But there is a swagger around City again, a confidence and a quiet determination to end a season of disappointment with a trophy and a statement of intent.
France 24
5 hours ago
- France 24
Spain star Bonmati out of hospital after meningitis scare
The two-time Ballon d'Or winner missed Spain's friendly win over Japan on Friday in the women's world champions' last warm-up match before the start of Euro 2025 next week. The RFEF statement revealed that the Barcelona player would now link up with Spain's Euro squad "in the coming days", although she is unlikely to figure in their opening matches. Spain begin their Women's Euro 2025 campaign against neighbours Portugal next Thursday in Bern. They are also drawn with Belgium and Italy in Group B. Meningitis is an infection of the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. Viral meningitis is less serious than the rarer bacterial variant, which can lead to death within 24 hours. © 2025 AFP
