PSG struggling to impress in the Champions League and new format could come in handy

Three games. A victory. No goals from the attackers.

Judging by Paris Saint-Germain’s performance so far, the revamped Champions League format could actually be PSG’s salvation because they may have struggled to qualify in the previous group format.

Tuesday’s 1-1 home draw in the league stage against Dutch league leaders PSV Eindhoven exposed familiar weaknesses in defense, while PSG no longer have galacticos like Kylian Mbappé or Neymar to decide tight matches.

Poor marking led to PSV’s goal from left-back Noa Lang and, after right-back Achraf Hakimi equalized early in the second half, PSV twice threatened a late victory with counter-attacks.

“It’s the little details that count. PSV managed to make our mistakes count,” said Hakimi. “It’s difficult when you have to chase the game and come back from behind.”

PSG lost 2-0 away to Arsenal in their previous game amid poor defending and needed a big error from the visiting goalkeeper in stoppage time to secure a 1-0 home win over lowly Girona in their second game. debut.

PSG’s only two goals so far have come from defenders amid wasted finishing.

Left-back Nuno Mendes scored against Girona but only because his cross was turned into a goal due to a goalkeeper error.

The new Champions League has 36 teams, playing eight games against eight different opponents until January, and offers many possibilities for qualification, even if they are not in good form.

The top eight will go straight to the round of 16 in March. Teams ranked between ninth and 24th go to the knockout playoffs in February and only the bottom 12 are eliminated immediately. PSG are currently 17th.

Hakimi said the players should have taken better advantage of their opportunities, but PSG coach Luis Enrique was pleased with the way his team played. He preferred to highlight that there was almost a victory in stoppage time, after PSV goalkeeper Walter Benitez made an impressive save from close range.

“We created opportunities. This match was not a disappointment,” he said through a translator. “The only thing is that we didn’t score one more than them and that’s a shame.”

But it looks like much tougher games are coming against Atletico Madrid, six-time champions Bayern Munich and 2023 champions Manchester City.

The previous format with just two teams from the four classified in each group may have been difficult for this PSG team – as it was last season.

PSG only qualified for the knockout stage in the last round of group games. After losing to Newcastle and AC Milan, they finished second behind Borussia Dortmund, who defeated PSG home and away in the semi-finals.