Christophe Galtier insists there is no risk in bringing his World Cup stars back into Ligue 1.
The likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and Ashraf Hakimi are all set to face Strasbourg on Wednesday as the French top flight picks up again.
The six-week break for domestic duties has allowed PSG’s star names to experience a rollercoaster ride and the scrutiny of working for the national team at the highest level.
Hakimi helped Morocco make history by becoming Africa’s first semi-finalist, while Neymar had an injury-ridden campaign that ended with Brazil losing on penalties to Croatia in the quarter-finals.
Mbappé then suffered the most brutal of fates when he became the second man to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final, only to finish second after France’s penalty loss to Argentina.
It’s been ten days since that defeat at Lusail Stadium, when Mbappe takes the field to face lowly local rivals, and Galtier said: “I don’t think there’s a risk.
“They wanted to play in these very important league games. Of course, in the coming weeks we will need to sort things out to see how Ashraf Hakimi and Kylian Mbappe manage.
“We are thinking about it and we will need to find a fight time so they can rest.”
That rest is likely to come sooner rather than later, given PSG have Champions League commitments since February, but for now, Galtier believes his players are reliable judges of their readiness to play.
Head coach Galtier saw PSG lead five points clear of second-placed Lens ahead of the World Cup, and with a trip to the Bollaert-Delelis stadium coming up on Sunday, the game in Strasbourg could be perceived by outsiders as a soft landing ahead of the first big test. arrives.
Galtier sees nothing of the sort, warning that the 19th-placed visitors are “playing for their lives” and suggesting that PSG’s previous kit means nothing.
Strasbourg have only won one of 15 league games this season, while the undefeated PSG have won 41 points in the same number of matches.
Strasbourg also have the highest expected goals against total Ligue 1 goals this season (28.52 xGA), indicating that their rivals have been able to create a large number of good scoring chances, while PSG has the lowest ( 15.06 xGA) and only scored nine goals. .
PSG are unbeaten in 31 home matches against Strasbourg in Ligue 1 (W24 D7), which is also the longest unbeaten streak against a specific opponent in Ligue 1.
Thus, on paper, Strasbourg has nothing to cling to. PSG have been unbeaten in their last 36 home matches in all competitions (W30 D6) since losing to Manchester City in the Champions League last April.
Perhaps the only salvation for the Alsatian side is that they won’t have to face World Cup winner Lionel Messi, who has been given a long break by PSG.
Galtier knows that under three points will be a disappointment, so he prepares the team very seriously and encourages them to respond.
“If you just focus on the table, that would be a big mistake,” Galtier said.
“We are starting from scratch. That’s what I told my players. We had a very good start to the season and we know why it happened. The players had a serious approach. They were demanding. They showed determination and humility.
“They want to achieve something together and we all need to think the same way tomorrow when the game starts.”
