BUDAPEST — Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique insisted his team is not favourites to defend their crown in Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final clash against Arsenal.
The Ligue 1 champions are a thrilling attacking force with more goals than any other team in the competition with 44, while opponents Arsenal have conceded six, the fewest of any side.
In last season’s final, PSG waltzed to a 5-0 win over Inter Milan to claim the trophy for the first time, but Luis Enrique said finals tend to be close affairs and that match was the exception that proves the rule.
“Finals are always difficult games; last year was exceptional, we did dominate against Inter,” said the Asturian coach.
“In the final, I don’t think there’s a favourite and, I’m being honest with you, for us the devil is in the detail. It will be a very close call.
“We will have to give our all for the 90 minutes but also enjoy them. There’s waves of tension but it’s also about knowing how to manage that stress.”
Luis Enrique said according to AFP that the clash of styles between PSG and Arsenal was not as apparent as some make out, despite the disparity in the teams’ statistics.
“I’d say that rather than two different approaches, they are two similar approaches but with different tactics, because they are a team that also scores goals, and we are a team that also defends well, but we do so in different ways,” added the coach.
Arsenal have never won the trophy, just as PSG had not until they finally won it last season.
“It’s powerful (motivation),” said Luis Enrique of Arsenal’s position.
“But you know how powerful it is to try to win the second Champions League in a row? It’s bigger!”
Only Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid have been able to win the Champions League in back-to-back seasons in the modern era of the competition.
Luis Enrique can become only the fifth manager to lift the trophy on three occasions if his team triumph at the Puskas Arena, after he won it with Barcelona in 2015 and then last season with PSG.
“It’s important to know how to handle a final -– you never know when you’ll be back in one,” remarked the coach.
Luis Enrique said European glory was the reason he came to the club and PSG’s main aim.
“That was my objective, the goal of the club, the goal of the sporting director, it was in the plan,” he added.
“Maybe not as fast as we achieved it… we deserved to win the last Champions League; we were the better team.
“It’s more easy when you have the possibilities we have, as a coach, and the facilities of the club, and the level of the players that I have to achieve those goals.
“At this moment, we are thinking about the future – the future is winning, another important trophy, and that’s the goal.”
Luis Enrique confirmed defenders Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes were fit for the final, while forward Ousmane Dembele said he had recovered from a calf problem.
