Paris Saint-Germain are going out in the next round of the Champions League.
That is what will happen if Unai Emery does not change how the team plays and moves the ball around. Because what they have been doing now is why they somehow conspired to finish second in the group, and how they allowed themselves to be caught in a 2-2 draw with Ludogorets.
LUDO-GO-RETS.
A change is needed.
Barcelona haven't been all that great and have their own issues. It's not the cold-blooded team that won the treble two years ago, but even when they are not flowing as smoothly, their frontline will tear PSG apart just as they did before.
I look back at the game that PSG had with Arsenal, where they drew and should have won the game. But I see how PSG were adamant about passing the ball from the back, obsessed with looking pretty, and Arsenal kept winning it high up. The only reason why PSG were not punished was lack of proper decision-making and finishing on Arsenal's part.
With Barcelona, if any of those chances fall to Messi, Neymar or the Cannibal, they get put away. And Barcelona made pressing cool again in football, so if PSG struggled with that strategy against Arsenal, you can only imagine how much harder it will be against the Catalans.
Emery has struggled. It's not been the ideal start to his PSG career, and I have been disappointed. I refuse to say that Blanc was better, but those that think he was, it's hard for me to give an argument to respond. PSG have failed to spark this season, and they look like a team who are still figuring out what their identity is all about.
In the shape they are in, they will get beat in both legs by Barcelona.
Barcelona have always struggled against teams that are more direct, and move the ball around quickly. Just look at the problems City caused them at the Nou Camp and how soundly they beat them at the Etihad.
Arfa and Lucas are two of the most exciting young talents in the world, and there is so much to come from them that we haven't seen yet. Which is why it's time for Emery to unleash them and make PSG play in a way that uses their speed and dribbling abilities.
There is still time before the first leg, but that change must start from today, in the next training session. Conte changed Chelsea's style and look at how well they are doing. Emery can take two leaves from that, and not be afraid to bring in a philosophy that he is more used to, and thus their chances of beating Barcelona will be enhanced.
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