No Mbappé, No Problem Against Lille

It would have been easy for Paris Saint-Germain to put forth a lackluster effort against Lille OSC on Saturday, with the UEFA Champions League knockout stage kicking off next week. Instead, Luis Enrique's squad showed resilience and is now full of confidence for the upcoming match against Real Sociedad.

On this episode of PSG Talking, I'm joined by Ligue1.com and PSGTalk.com writer Eddie Razo and Ethan from PSG Fan Club Boise. We discuss the come-from-behind win over Lille, preview the match against Real Sociedad, discuss Kylian Mbappé's future, and so much more.

Up first, we share what we liked and didn't like from PSG's 3-1 win over Lille at the Parc des Princes with Mbappé left on the bench to rest his injured ankle. The visitors struck first thanks to some shaky defending from Les Parisiens, but Gonçalo Ramos answered with a goal of his own just four minutes later in the first half. PSG went into the half up a goal thanks to an own-goal from Alexsandro and tacked on one late in the second half when Randal Kolo Muani capped off a brilliant run from Bradley Barcola. We highlight Ousmane Dembélé's emergence and Manuel Ugarte's return to form.

We then transition to the match on February 14, against Real Sociedad in the Round of 16 of the Champions League. We discuss the ideal starting lineup and rate our confidence level in the squad currently. We also give our prediction for the first leg of the tie.

Moving off the pitch, we break down the media's coverage of the ongoing Mbappé saga. It was recently reported that he has agreed to join Real Madrid in the summer, but it's never been clearer why the Paris native should stay in the French capital. We discuss the mixed messages from the media and when Mbappé may announce his decision.

We wrap up the show with a discussion about the Parc des Princes, which may not be the home of PSG in the near future, and the news that blue cards could soon be part of the game we all love.

As always, thank you for listening, and be sure to subscribe and rate the show wherever you download your podcasts. We’re also on Substack! Subscribe for free today to access premium PSG content.