POISSY, France: Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique insists he has a “perfect” relationship with Kylian Mbappe, despite the France star forward’s attitude during recent games raising questions about his happiness at the club.
Mbappe appeared frustrated during last week’s 1-1 Champions League draw with Borussia Dortmund in Germany, disappointed with his teammates for settling for a point when a win would have seen them finish top of their group.
He again looked less than happy at times during Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Lille in Ligue 1, a match in which he played through the middle of the attack, away from his usual preferred role on the left flank.
“As always, a perfect relationship,” Luis Enrique said when asked how he got on with Mbappe at a press conference on Tuesday, on the eve of PSG’s final match of the year at home to Metz.
“We are not a couple but that is mainly because he doesn’t want us to be,” the Spaniard joked.
“I don’t know why I keep getting asked this question. I am very close to most of my players.”
“Kylian is always making jokes and laughing,” he added.
Mbappe, who is out of contract at the end of this season, will celebrate his 25th birthday on Wednesday.
“Twenty-five is so young. I hope he continues to have more success at PSG and that we are able to help him,” Luis Enrique said.
“He is fantastic. We are lucky to have him,” he added of a player who has scored 19 goals in all competitions this season.
PSG coach Luis Enrique claims ‘perfect’ relationship with Mbappe
https://arab.news/nsbh3
PSG coach Luis Enrique claims ‘perfect’ relationship with Mbappe
- Mbappe appeared frustrated during last week’s 1-1 Champions League draw with Borussia Dortmund
- “Twenty-five is so young. I hope he continues to have more success at PSG and that we are able to help him,” Luis Enrique said
Diaz scores again as hosts Morocco beat Cameroon to reach AFCON semis
- Diaz’s fifth goal in five matches at the tournament was followed by Saibari’s strike in the second half
- Morocco are under enormous pressure to win the Cup of Nations in front of their own fans
RABAT: Brahim Diaz kept up his remarkable Africa Cup of Nations scoring record and Ismael Saibari was also on target as hosts Morocco beat Cameroon 2-0 in their quarter-final showdown on Friday to keep their title dreams alive.
Real Madrid winger Diaz got the decisive touch to Ayoub El Kaabi’s 26th-minute header in front of more than 64,000 fans at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in capital Rabat.
Diaz’s fifth goal in five matches at the tournament was followed by Saibari’s strike in the second half, with Morocco well worth their victory as they progress to a semifinal against the winner of Saturday’s clash between Algeria and Nigeria.
That promises to be a stiffer test for Walid Regragui’s team than that posed by Cameroon, who were hoping to spring an upset having already exceeded expectations in coming this far after a troubled build-up to the tournament.
The Indomitable Lions, five-time African champions, created little with Manchester United forward Bryan Mbeumo struggling to make an impact.
Morocco, Africa’s top-ranked team and World Cup semifinalists in 2022, are under enormous pressure to win the Cup of Nations in front of their own fans, half a century after their last continental title.
There have been doubts as to whether they can handle the weight of expectation, but they remain on course to achieve their objective — it is the first time Morocco have reached the AFCON semifinals since they lost the 2004 final to Tunisia.
The hosts were unchanged from their 1-0 last-16 win over Tanzania as they looked to continue an unbeaten record going back to their defeat by South Africa at the 2024 AFCON.
Fresh from knocking out South Africa in the last round here, Cameroon were clearly banking on frustrating Morocco as much as possible in an attempt to turn the crowd against the home side.
- Saibari seals it -
Morocco were beaten by the Cameroonians in the semifinals the last time they hosted AFCON in 1988, but a repeat outcome never really looked likely.
David Pagou’s team were not helped by the early loss of right wing-back Jackson Tchamadeu, who tried to carry on after Noussair Mazraoui landed heavily on his knee before eventually being stretchered off.
Moments after that, Morocco scored. Achraf Hakimi sent in a corner from the right which was headed toward goal by El Kaabi at the near post, and the ball struck Diaz in the groin before going in.
That calmed a frenetic home support, who cheered their team off at the break after seeing Abde Ezzalzouli and El Kaabi come close to adding further goals.
Morocco were on top, and Cameroon’s response was to change formation after the break, from a back three to a 4-2-3-1, in an attempt to create more danger.
Ezzalzouli headed just over from a Hakimi corner, and then a cross by the Paris Saint-Germain star caused havoc in the Cameroon box as Samuel Kotto hooked the ball away from the line.
Mbeumo had appeals for a penalty dismissed by the Mauritanian referee before PSV Eindhoven’s Saibari fired in the killer second goal on 74 minutes after controlling Ezzalzouli’s dead-ball delivery, as Morocco march on to Wednesday’s semis.
