PSG Paying Price For Long Season, Says Coach After Bayern Munich

PSG coach Luis Enrique has revealed that the team is paying the price for a long season following the injury crisis that has hit the club this season.

The Champions League defending champions suffered a 2-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in Paris on Tuesday with Ousmane Dembele and Achraf Hakimi both limping off during the match.

Dembele, who missed seven games earlier this season with a hamstring injury, was making his first Champions League start of the campaign but was forced off after 25 minutes with what appeared to be a calf problem.

The injuries add to a long list of absentees that has already included Marquinhos, Joao Neves, Bradley Barcola, Desire Doue and Fabian Ruiz — all sidelined at various points since August.

Doue is currently out with a right thigh muscle injury that will keep him unavailable for several more weeks.

Enrique has blamed the team’s injury crisis as a result of the long season after the team was involved in 65 matches across all competitions last season, including the Club World Cup.

He said: “I can’t remember a single match with the whole squad fit. It’s a different kind of season, and we have to manage that. I’m calm and confident we’ll recover our players and our level.

“Dembele’s injury has nothing to do with the previous one. He played the time you saw — it’s not a relapse.

“For Hakimi, that’s football — it’s a contact sport.It’s unfortunate, but these are actions that happen with a bit of bad luck.

“When you recover injured players, they’re not at 100 per cent. That’s something I need to manage better. It’s a long season, and it’s about how you handle these moments.

“I’m calm and relaxed because I know we’ll overcome all of this,” he said. “We’ll get our players back and we’ll find our level again.”

Despite the injury crisis, PSG remain top of Ligue 1 and third in the Champions League’s league phase with nine points from four games.