Ousmane Dembele ruled out of Paris St Germain’s clash with Strasbourg
Stats Perform
February 1, 2024 23:53 MYT
February 1, 2024 23:53 MYT
Ousmane Dembele will miss Ligue 1 leaders Paris St Germain’s trip to Strasbourg on Friday.
The former Barcelona winger missed training on Thursday with a thigh problem and the club have since announced he will be not be risked at the Stade de la Meinau.
Luis Enrique’s team, who have a six-point lead at the top of the table, will also be without the suspended Bradley Barcola.
The forward received a one-match ban after being sent off for two bookable offences in stoppage time of last week’s 2-2 draw with Brest.
PSG had led 2-0 in that match but surrendered their advantage, raising question marks over their resilience.
Manager Luis Enrique, however, has dismissed concerns about a lack of stamina.
“After watching the match against Brest again, I don’t think we had an athletic problem,” the Spaniard told reporters at a press conference to preview the game at Strasbourg.
“I think they were very good opponents – that’s the reality. It’s true that we had difficulty pressing and recovering balls, but I don’t think it was a physical problem.”
After being held by Brest, who are third in the league, Enrique recognises PSG face a tough game against another side in good form.
𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) January 31, 2024
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Strasbourg, under the guidance of Patrick Vieira, are unbeaten in their last six matches.
“They’re a team in better momentum than at the start of the season,” said Enrique, the former Barcelona and Spain manager. “They have had good results recently and are in the middle of the table.
“They’re a team that creates but also defends very well, in an organised manner. We will have to be ready for everything in this match.”
The game comes too soon for Achraf Hakimi to rejoin the PSG squad following the end of Morocco’s campaign at the Africa Cup of Nations.
With the Champions League also due to resume later this month with the first leg of the last-16 tie against Real Sociedad, Enrique is aware the business end of the season is approaching.
He hopes his team can tighten their grip on the title race as pressures increase.
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) February 1, 2024
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He said: “We have to win the next matches and get to the end of the season in the best possible way.
“For the moment, what is important is the match against Strasbourg, but now we are going to have to play matches every three or four days.
“We have to take these three points which are really important.”