INTERVIEW: Jonathan Johnson talks PSG and Chelsea in the Champions League

By Rich Laverty.

The Offside Rule’s Rich Laverty talks to French football journalist Jonathan Johnson about PSG’s upcoming clash with Chelsea in the Champions League.

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PSG aren’t having it all their own way in France this season are they? Are the team struggling as a whole or have their opponents just become stronger?

A bit of both. PSG have been some way below their best at times this season, but the competition in Ligue 1 has also stepped up a gear. Lyon and Marseille are far more credible threats for les Parisiens’ crown now than they were last campaign, while the capital outfit were perhaps lured into a false sense of security by last term’s relatively easy title win. PSG have been guilty of complacency in a number of games, most notably against smaller domestic opposition, contributing towards their struggles in the league so far this season.

Simply put, Laurent Blanc’s men have often thought that just turning up is enough to win games in France.
One other key factor is the age of this current team. A lot of its key components, such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Motta, Thiago Silva and Maxwell are 30 or over and are suffering from fluctuating form as they approach their twilight years. Silva perhaps less so, as he has only recently turned 30, but he suffered an injury early in the season and it took time for him to recover his fitness and form. Zlatan, previously the most crucial element of this PSG team, has also suffered with injuries and fitness issues this season, while the likes of Blaise Matuidi did not get enough time to recuperate this summer after a long campaign and World Cup last year.

Add age and those injury issues together and it has been a disrupted season for PSG so far.

One of the summer’s biggest deals was David Luiz leaving Chelsea for PSG. How’s he doing and how much of a threat does he pose his former club?

To be fair to him, Luiz has done relatively well since arriving. He has looked solid alongside captain and fellow Brazilian international Silva and he also struck up an excellent partnership with compatriot Marquinhos when the skipper was out injured. One of the problems for PSG this season has been a lack of balance in defence, partly caused by a crisis in confidence for Silva that he has now recovered from, but also because of the decline in Gregory van der Wiel’s performances at right-back.

Laurent Blanc has fixed this by deploying Marquinhos at right-back, so Luiz now forms part of an extremely solid back four that features all three Brazilian centre-backs and often a fourth Selecao star in left-back Maxwell too.

Luiz does not get to take many free-kicks at PSG, nor does he venture forward that often. However, he does pose a threat from set-pieces and he could perhaps hurt his former Chelsea team-mates there, as he did in the 3-2 win over Barcelona earlier in the season. He will be keen to not score an own-goal in Paris this time though.

PSG really gave Chelsea a good game last season, especially in Paris. What will Laurent Blanc and his team have learned from that tie?

PSG have learned that if they want to oust a team like Chelsea, then they must keep a clean sheet at home. Had the French champions not conceded that penalty in the first leg last season, they would have won 3-2 on aggregate.

PSG will also know that they must take any and every opportunity that comes their way in the second leg at Stamford Bridge as well. Plenty was made of Edinson Cavani’s miss during that match and the Uruguayan will be under pressure to prove that he can make the difference in these big games.

Besides the obvious name of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who offers the biggest threat at the moment in the PSG side?

Lucas Moura and Javier Pastore are the two men that Chelsea will need to keep a close eye on during both legs, while Marco Verratti’s influence should not be underestimated. Lucas and Pastore have been two of PSG’s top performers so far this season and the Brazilian will pose Chelsea problems because of his speed, while the Argentinian will be a handful because of his creative influence.

Blues fans will not need reminding that Pastore scored a sensational late solo effort against then in last season’s first leg and el Flaco will be keen to replicate that special goal in one of the two upcoming games. A recent calf problem could mean that he starts the first leg on the bench though.

(Interview took place before Lucas picked up an injury at the weekend)

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And vice versa, who on Chelsea’s team can expose any weaknesses in PSG’s team?

PSG are well aware of the supremely gifted Eden Hazard, to the point where they have already tried to sign him from Chelsea. The Belgian will once again be seen as one of the main threats in these two games, but Jose Mourinho’s men also have the likes of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas.

In all likelihood, Hazard and Fabregas will be the two players that PSG try their best to shut down and mark out of the game. Without the Belgium international or the Spaniard pulling the strings, Costa is likely to have to forage for his own chances and this will make him easier to deal with for the PSG defence. It still will not be an easy task though.

This Chelsea side is much better than the one that les Parisiens beat 3-1 in Paris last year.

Finally, what are the chances of PSG going through after the two legs?

On paper, few will give PSG much of a chance over two legs. However, a team with the quality that the French champions possess will always stand a chance of beating the top European sides like Chelsea.

Mourinho’s men are favourites to progress and the first leg will be of vital importance to PSG. If les Parisiens can keep a clean sheet and win by more than one goal, then the momentum will be with them going to Stamford Bridge. Concede a goal and it will be very hard for Laurent Blanc and his team to go through.

As last season’s tie proved, scoring three goals at home is not enough if you let your opponents score, but even then, PSG were just moments away from qualifying for the semi-finals before Demba Ba scored. A 2-0 win would be better for the French giants than a repeat of last year’s first-leg scoreline.

PSG are a team “built for Europe and not for France” in the words of their former sporting director Leonardo. It is in these games that they have to live up to this, as it is true that they seem to come alive for the really big continental encounters.

Follow @RichJLaverty

Follow Jonathan Johnson here