PSG: Enrique's staff explain the management of Ousmane Dembélé
Ousmane Dembélé's situation has been a talking point at Paris Saint-Germain since the start of the season. The management of the Ballon d'Or winner has raised questions.
A few days after the international break, Paris Saint-Germain decided to give left-back Nuno Mendes (24, 2 Ligue 1 appearances this season) and forward Ousmane Dembélé (29, 4 Ligue 1 appearances this season) a rest. This routine management decision by Paris coach Luis Enrique raised questions. The coach had already managed the France international's workload last August.
PSG's explanation
According to information from L'Équipe on Monday, Paris Saint-Germain opted for this strategy with Ousmane Dembélé because of the efforts he has made with France. “The staff believe that Ousmane must, particularly ahead of major fixtures, manage to recover and arrive with plenty of freshness, while being capable of putting in a major effort for 60 or 70 minutes,” explained a source close to the capital club.
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Although PSG's management approach can be understood, it has sometimes caused a degree of frustration for Dembélé. To recall, last year, in major European matches, the France international struggled physically after the hour mark and would have liked to accumulate playing time in order to be sharper.