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USA Today
14-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
PSG coach Luis Enrique explains postgame altercation with Chelsea's João Pedro
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — He was trying to break things up, that's what Luis Enrique is going with. Moments after Paris Saint-Germain lost its bid to cap a historic season in a 3-0 defeat in the Club World Cup against Chelsea, Enrique, the PSG manager, took a swipe at Chelsea striker João Pedro during a postgame altercation, striking him near his neck and chin. Just before that confrontation, Enrique approached Pedro, who was having a discussion with PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. As Enrique seemingly tried to calm tensions, Pedro swatted Enrique's hands away, leading to Enrique making the contact near Pedro's head. 'At the end of the match there was a situation that I think was totally avoidable, for everyone involved,' Enrique said in Spanish during his post-match press conference 'My objective and intention, like always, was to separate the players to avoid further problems. There was a lot of tension, a lot of passion. There was shoving going on and I think we should avoid that and it should never happen again. 'But I repeat: my intention was to avoid things getting worse.' The incident seemed to simmer from a series of physical challenges toward the end of the match. Paris Saint-Germain, clearly frustrated with its impending defeat, was enforced for two yellow cards and a third that was overturned on review to a red in the final 10 minutes of the match. During the sequence that led to the red card, PSG midfielder João Neves tugged on Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella's hair, pulling him to the turf. 'I don't need to say anything about them because it's normal,' Pedro said after the match. 'Everyone wants to win the game, and in the end, I think they lose their head. But this is football. This has happened. Now we need to enjoy because we won the tournament.' Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said he missed the altercation because he was congratulating Paris Saint-Germain's players. PSG was trying to conclude a historic season with another honor, after they won the French league, the French Cup, the French Super Cup and the club's first-ever UEFA Champions League title in late May. It was evident, from very early on, that Chelsea was a real threat to unseat Paris Saint-Germain's string of successes. Just seven-and-a-half minutes into the match, midfielder Cole Palmer hooked a left-footed shot that just slid past the left post. By the half-hour mark, Palmer would have a pair of goals, and Chelsea would be hammering PSG on its half, smothering it with relentless pressure. 'Well, this is how soccer is sometimes,' Enrique said in French. 'I'll need to review the film to comprehensively analyze what happened, but they started the match very well, with aggressive pressure and we had difficulty matching that. From there, we had a few chances to score, but it was not in the cards.'
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'I don't care that PSG are favourites'
Reece James "does not care" that Chelsea are underdogs for Sunday's Club World Cup final against Paris St-Germain and insists the Blues will "surprise a lot of people". Having won the French Cup, Ligue 1 and Champions League, PSG are a game away from a fourth major trophy of 2025 after destroying Real Madrid 4-0 in their semi-final on Wednesday. Advertisement Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca labelled them the "best team in the world" in his pre-match news conference, but his captain is unfazed by the praise for their opponents. "To be honest, I don't care that everyone is bigging up our opposition," said James. "We're preparing right and we're going there to win. "I've been in many finals before where we were favourites and we didn't come out on top." Similarities have been drawn between the youthful nature of both Chelsea and PSG's squads, with Luis Enrique's side beating other Premier League sides Manchester City, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal in the Champions League before destroying Inter Milan 5-0 in the final. Advertisement "PSG are amazing and we're expecting a tough game, but we also have an amazing team and we're going to surprise a lot of people," James added. "I'm sure the analyst team we have will be looking at the games where PSG haven't done so well, and we'll try and adapt to that."
Malaysian Reserve
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Malaysian Reserve
Luis Enrique eyes more history for PSG after reaching Club World Cup final
PARIS Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique savoured his team's performance in blowing away Real Madrid on Wednesday to reach the Club World Cup final and urged them to go on and cap a historic season by claiming yet another trophy. Two goals from Fabian Ruiz either side of an Ousmane Dembele strike, as well as a late effort from substitute Goncalo Ramos, gave PSG an emphatic 4-0 semi-final victory at MetLife Stadium against a Madrid team who have just started working under new coach Xabi Alonso. 'It is a beautiful victory and we are happy to be in the final,' said Luis Enrique. PSG came into the Club World Cup at the end of a campaign in which they won Ligue 1 and the French Cup before thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final to win the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history. Victory against Chelsea in Sunday's final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey would mean PSG winning every competition in which they have taken part this season. 'That is the objective we have had since the beginning but it is always very difficult to achieve these things — very few teams can do what we are trying to do,' said the 55-year-old. 'We are one game away from making history for Paris and for a French club by winning every competition we have taken part in. That means a lot for us and for our fans.' PSG have been outstanding in 2025 and are such a well-oiled machine under Luis Enrique that they appear unstoppable, while Alonso only took over from Carlo Ancelotti as Real coach prior to the tournament in the United States. 'It is a new set-up for them. He has only just come in while we have been working together for two years, so this is normal,' said Luis Enrique, appointed as PSG coach in July 2023, of his compatriot. 'He needs time to get a pre-season in to work with his team. He can't be judged. The two situations cannot be compared.' Meanwhile the Spaniard said Dembele had again shown he was a serious candidate to win the Ballon d'Or after the France forward played a starring role in PSG's victory. Dembele was starting for the first time at the Club World Cup having come into the tournament with an injury suffered playing for France last month. His goal to make it 2-0 was his 35th for PSG in 52 games in all competitions since last August. 'For me, when it comes to the Ballon d'Or, I must say that the players who can win it have to not just score goals and set up goals but help their team to win trophies. 'Ousmane Dembele does those things more than any other player.' — AFP
New Straits Times
10-07-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Luis Enrique eyes more history for PSG after reaching Club World Cup final
EAST RUTHERFORD, UNITED STATES: Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique savoured his team's performance in blowing away Real Madrid on Wednesday to reach the Club World Cup final and urged them to go on and cap a historic season by claiming yet another trophy. Two goals from Fabian Ruiz either side of an Ousmane Dembele strike, as well as a late effort from substitute Goncalo Ramos, gave PSG an emphatic 4-0 semi-final victory at MetLife Stadium against a Madrid team who have just started working under new coach Xabi Alonso. "It is a beautiful victory and we are happy to be in the final," said Luis Enrique. PSG came into the Club World Cup at the end of a campaign in which they won Ligue 1 and the French Cup before thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final to win the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history. Victory against Chelsea in Sunday's final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey would mean PSG winning every competition in which they have taken part this season. "That is the objective we have had since the beginning but it is always very difficult to achieve these things – very few teams can do what we are trying to do," said the 55-year-old. "We are one game away from making history for Paris and for a French club by winning every competition we have taken part in. That means a lot for us and for our fans." PSG have been outstanding in 2025 and are such a well-oiled machine under Luis Enrique that they appear unstoppable, while Alonso only took over from Carlo Ancelotti as Real coach prior to the tournament in the United States. "It is a new set-up for them. He has only just come in while we have been working together for two years, so this is normal," said Luis Enrique, appointed as PSG coach in July 2023, of his compatriot. "He needs time to get a pre-season in to work with his team. He can't be judged. The two situations cannot be compared." Meanwhile the Spaniard said Dembele had again shown he was a serious candidate to win the Ballon d'Or after the France forward played a starring role in PSG's victory. Dembele was starting for the first time at the Club World Cup having come into the tournament with an injury suffered playing for France last month. His goal to make it 2-0 was his 35th for PSG in 52 games in all competitions since last August. "For me, when it comes to the Ballon d'Or, I must say that the players who can win it have to not just score goals and set up goals but help their team to win trophies. "Ousmane Dembele does those things more than any other player."
Fox Sports
07-07-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Brazilian Paulo César hired as coach of PSG women's team
Associated Press PARIS (AP) — Paulo Cesar was hired as coach of the Paris Saint-Germain women's team on Monday, having played for the men's team during his career as a midfielder. PSG said in a statement that the 47-year-old Brazilian signed a two-year contract. He previously coached the club's under-19 women's team, which won the title last season, and he took charge of the women's senior team on an interim basis after Fabrice Abriel was fired last May. 'I'm deeply attached to this club,' César said. "It's with a lot of enthusiasm and determination that I take on this role.' César made 67 appearances for the men's team from 2002-07, winning the French Cup in 2006, and also played in Ligue 1 for Toulouse. He won three caps with Brazil. ___ AP soccer: in this topic
