Luis Enrique, the manager of Ligue 1’s Paris St. Germain, said that being too focused on winning the Champions League would hurt the team’s chances against Borussia Dortmund.
Since Qatar Sports Investments took over in 2011, PSG has been the best club in France, winning the league nine times. They have also done well in France’s local cup events, but have never won the Champions League.
The French champions will try again for the rare title on Tuesday when they play Dortmund in their first game of a tough group that also includes English team Newcastle United and seven-time winners AC Milan of Italy.
“When a club is obsessed with something, that’s never a good sign. “You have to have ambition, but obsession doesn’t work anywhere in life,” Luis Enrique told reporters on Monday before the game at Parc des Princes.
“You have to wait and see how the battle goes. Football is a great sport, so any result is possible.
“You can play a great game and lose or play badly and win. As a club, we play all events with the goal of winning. It’s very bold, but it’s important.”
Marquinhos, a defender and club captain, agreed with his boss when he said, “The Champions League is not a passion, and there is no pressure.
“We are working because we are athletes, and the club wants to win every game, including this one. We know the road, and it’s a long one.
“We have to take it step by step; it’s a very hard competition to win.”
PSG is fifth in the Ligue 1 standings with eight points after five games. They’ve had a mixed start under Luis Enrique, winning two of their five league games.
They lost to Nice 3-2 on Friday, but Luis Enrique said that the ups and downs in the early part of his job were to be expected.
“There is a lot of information to share, ideas and concepts that the players need to understand. I’ve found the team to be very open,” the Spaniard said.
“Those people are amazing. Their help is great, even when the results aren’t up to par.
“I already have this knowledge, this process that takes time… I’m confident that there will be good games and good results.