an honest effort
By: j | October 23rd, 2008Over the last few months as The Offside’s PSG blogger I have attempted to present factual information from the (obvious) vantage of a supporter of the club but equally tempered within my experience in the game. Since the spring of the year, when PSG thankfully avoided relegation, I have been pleased by the effort they have put forth on the pitch and possibly most obvious, the desire to bring respect and honour back to the crest.
The “crest” is a big component of the sport for me and to be honest I haven’t liked the way the regional aspect of clubs have been forgotten the last twenty years in some cases but am aware that is a natural consequence with global growth. However through it all, many clubs have maintained that devout respect for the “crest” and as PSG emerged this spring it was my belief that this would become a central theme in its new efforts.
Regarding that theme, the club have done a remarkable job for the most part and while supporters would certainly like a few more victories, the torment of last season is generally put aside and pride has returned. Supporters have known, whether success or failure in a match, the club has put their best foot forward and given their all.
Unfortunately today, they abandoned that notion and their is a lot of explaining to do. I won’t go through an endless review of the PSG – Schalke 04 UEFA Cup match that PSG lost easily 3-1 as it isn’t worthy of such.
PSG did not put forth their best effort or at least decided to not try to win. As manager, I presume it was Paul Le Guen’s decision not to use the majority of his top players and instead put out a squad made up of substitutes and a few select veterans. There was no mention leading up to the match that they would be omitting Ceará, Zoumana Camara, Grégory Bourillon, Stéphane Sessegnon, Guillaume Hoarau and Claude Makélélé from the lineup but that is precisely what they did. Simple and to a perfunctory point, I expect more from the club then a half-hearted effort and if a professional coach considers “tactics” as running from a match, he shouldn’t be coaching for long. I recognize that the upcoming match against Marseille is a priority but this was not the approach you want to take when you are representing Paris and I might add French Football in European competition. I am hopeful that for the next UEFA Cup match the club decides to play with a level of respect that fans, the “crest” and all of French Football is deserving of. Give us an honest effort or find someone that will.
As a passing note for the men who stepped on the pitch today, it should be said that they played a superb match in a very trying situation. Veterans Sammy Traoré and Mateja Kežman should be noted for their yeoman duty and steadying influence. If this managerial decision was a surprise to fans, you can only imagine how it was for them and how they knew they would need to rise to the occasion in the match. For them, they are deserving of credit, of fighting the good fight and defending with honour.
PSG travels to Marseille this weekend for another round of the great rivalry. I will be posting my preview of the match shortly.
Match Details:
PSG 1
Schalke 3
PSG
Mickaël Landreau,Larrys Mabiala,Sammy Traoré,Sylvain Armand,Youssouf Mulunbu (Mamadou Sakho 46′),Granddi Ngoyi,Jérémy Clément,Younousse Sankharé (Jérôme Rothen 75′),Clément Chantôme, Mateja Kežman,Loris Arnaud (Péguy Luyindula 75′)
Goals: Jérémy Clément 90+2
Schalke 04
Manuel Neuer, Rafinha,Heiko Westermann (Mladen Krstajic 63′),Marcelo Bordon (Benedikt Howedes 53′),Levan Kobiashvili,Orlando Engelaar,Fabian Ernst (Mladen Krstajić 71′),Jermaine Jones,Jefferson Farfán,Halil Altintop,Kevin Kurányi
Goals: Larrys Mabiala (og 12), Kevin Kurányi (39),Halil Altintop (70)
Category: Team News
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