PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique refused to complain about the mounting injuries affecting his team before Wednesday’s Champions League match at Barcelona.
Defending champion PSG will be without star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé and forward Désiré Doué.
They are all out injured along with central defender Marquinhos, the club captain, while PSG have doubts over the fitness of key midfielders Vitinha and João Neves.
“You can either get results or make excuses. Whoever plays tomorrow is part of a real team,” Luis Enrique said Tuesday at a pre-match news conference. “We are lucky to have very good players in every position and to have the finances to recruit very good players. So, if there’s a coach who can’t complain, then it’s me.”
Luis Enrique is uncertain if he will pick Vitinha, who came off in the first half against Auxerre on Saturday, or Neves, who missed the past two Ligue 1 games with a thigh injury.
“We will see how the players feel when they wake up tomorrow. It is not a decisive game, so we are calm,” Luis Enrique said. “The decision will come more from the players than from me.”
PSG began the defense of their first Champions League title with a 4-0 rout of Atalanta two weeks ago.
But a Barcelona team featuring the inspired passing of midfielder Pedri, the mesmeric runs of winger Lamine Yamal, and the lethal finishing of veteran Robert Lewandowski — third all-time with 105 Champions League goals — appears a far harder proposition. Hansi Flick’s team was a Champions League semifinalist last season.
“Without doubt Pedri is like Harry Potter, I hope he doesn’t bring his magic wand tomorrow. We’ll do all we can to make sure he is the least involved possible,” said Luis Enrique, who won the Champions League as Barcelona coach in 2015 and played for the club as a standout midfielder.
“The two teams have the same philosophy and way of playing,” he added. “The key will be which team manages to keep the ball.”
Losing it exposes PSG to the counter-attacking of Yamal, who finished second behind Dembélé in the Ballon d’Or vote and caused havoc with his runs down the right flank in the competition last season.
PSG right back Achraf Hakimi said Yamal “will be playing against the best left back in the world” in Nuno Mendes.
“He is capable of stopping Lamine,” Hakimi said. “The important thing is not to leave (Yamal) one on one, so we will help (Mendes) out.”
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PSG’s injuries mount but Luis Enrique unfazed before Barcelona game in Champions League
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PSG’s injuries mount but Luis Enrique unfazed before Barcelona game in Champions League
- “You can either get results or make excuses. Whoever plays tomorrow is part of a real team,” Enrique said
- “We are lucky to have very good players in every position and to have the finances to recruit very good players”
Tennis world number ones Sabalenka, Alcaraz begin Australian Open campaigns
- Carlos Alcaraz, who could complete a career Grand Slam if he wins the tournament, faces Adam Walton
- Aryna Sabalenka takes on Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah as she seeks a third title at Melbourne Park
MELBOURNE: The first round of the Australian Open begins in Melbourne on Sunday.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz, who could complete a career Grand Slam if he wins the tournament, faces Adam Walton, while Aryna Sabalenka takes on Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah as she seeks a third title at Melbourne Park.
Top men’s match: Alcaraz v Walton
At 22, Alcaraz could replace Don Budge as the youngest man to achieve the career Grand Slam with victory at the Australian Open. The Spaniard has left no one in any doubt what his main goal is for the 2026 season, saying in November he would rather win a first Melbourne Park crown than retain his French and US Open titles.
His quest to make history will begin with a first-round tie against Australian Walton.
The pair have crossed paths once before, with Alcaraz beating the Australian 6-4 7-6(4) during his title-winning run at the Queen’s Club Championships last year.
Top women’s match: Sabalenka v Rakotomanga Rajaonah
Sabalenka will be bidding to continue her incredible record in hard court Grand Slam tournaments when she begins her campaign against Frenchwoman Rakotomanga Rajaonah.
The Belarusian world number one has reached the final of the last six majors she has played on the surface, winning four of those.
She enters the competition in fine form after retaining her Brisbane International title this month without losing a set, and should have little trouble when she takes on the 118th-ranked Rakotomanga Rajaonah.
Venus Williams is back
Venus Williams, a two-times Australian Open singles finalist, returns to the tournament for the first time since 2021 after receiving a wildcard.
The 45-year-old faces Olga Danilovic in the first round, where she is set to become the oldest woman to feature in the Australian Open main draw by surpassing Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she bowed out in the first round in 2015.
Williams has endured a poor start to the season, losing to Magda Linette in the first round in Auckland and to Tatjana Maria in her opening match at the Hobart International.
Despite her defeats, she said she was happy with her level.
“I can’t expect perfection right now, but I know I’m playing good tennis. Winning and losing doesn’t know any age. Once you walk on court, you’re there to compete,” Williams said before her defeat in Hobart.
Australian Open order of play on Sunday
Here is the order of play on the main showcourts on the first day of the Australian Open (prefix number denotes seeding):
Rod Laver Arena
Day session
Aliaksandra Sasnovich (Belarus) v 7-Jasmine Paolini (Italy)
3-Alexander Zverev (Germany) v Gabriel Diallo (Canada)
Night session
1-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) v Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah (France)
1-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) v Adam Walton (Australia)
Margaret Court Arena
Day session
Maria Sakkari (Greece) v Leolia Jeanjean (France)
18-Francisco Cerundolo (Argentina) v Zhang Zhizhen (China)
Night session
10-Alexander Bublik (Kazakhstan) v Jenson Brooksby (US)
Mananchaya Sawangkaew (Thailand) v 28-Emma Raducanu (Britain)
John Cain Arena
Day session
Arthur Fery (Britain) v 20-Flavio Cobolli (Italy)
Day session
12-Elina Svitolina (Ukraine) v Cristina Bucsa (Spain)
Night session
29-Frances Tiafoe (US) v Jason Kubler (Australia)
Olga Danilovic (Serbia) v Venus Williams (US)
World number one Carlos Alcaraz, who could complete a career Grand Slam if he wins the tournament, faces Adam Walton, while Aryna Sabalenka takes on Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah as she seeks a third title at Melbourne Park.
Top men’s match: Alcaraz v Walton
At 22, Alcaraz could replace Don Budge as the youngest man to achieve the career Grand Slam with victory at the Australian Open. The Spaniard has left no one in any doubt what his main goal is for the 2026 season, saying in November he would rather win a first Melbourne Park crown than retain his French and US Open titles.
His quest to make history will begin with a first-round tie against Australian Walton.
The pair have crossed paths once before, with Alcaraz beating the Australian 6-4 7-6(4) during his title-winning run at the Queen’s Club Championships last year.
Top women’s match: Sabalenka v Rakotomanga Rajaonah
Sabalenka will be bidding to continue her incredible record in hard court Grand Slam tournaments when she begins her campaign against Frenchwoman Rakotomanga Rajaonah.
The Belarusian world number one has reached the final of the last six majors she has played on the surface, winning four of those.
She enters the competition in fine form after retaining her Brisbane International title this month without losing a set, and should have little trouble when she takes on the 118th-ranked Rakotomanga Rajaonah.
Venus Williams is back
Venus Williams, a two-times Australian Open singles finalist, returns to the tournament for the first time since 2021 after receiving a wildcard.
The 45-year-old faces Olga Danilovic in the first round, where she is set to become the oldest woman to feature in the Australian Open main draw by surpassing Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she bowed out in the first round in 2015.
Williams has endured a poor start to the season, losing to Magda Linette in the first round in Auckland and to Tatjana Maria in her opening match at the Hobart International.
Despite her defeats, she said she was happy with her level.
“I can’t expect perfection right now, but I know I’m playing good tennis. Winning and losing doesn’t know any age. Once you walk on court, you’re there to compete,” Williams said before her defeat in Hobart.
Australian Open order of play on Sunday
Here is the order of play on the main showcourts on the first day of the Australian Open (prefix number denotes seeding):
Rod Laver Arena
Day session
Aliaksandra Sasnovich (Belarus) v 7-Jasmine Paolini (Italy)
3-Alexander Zverev (Germany) v Gabriel Diallo (Canada)
Night session
1-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) v Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah (France)
1-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) v Adam Walton (Australia)
Margaret Court Arena
Day session
Maria Sakkari (Greece) v Leolia Jeanjean (France)
18-Francisco Cerundolo (Argentina) v Zhang Zhizhen (China)
Night session
10-Alexander Bublik (Kazakhstan) v Jenson Brooksby (US)
Mananchaya Sawangkaew (Thailand) v 28-Emma Raducanu (Britain)
John Cain Arena
Day session
Arthur Fery (Britain) v 20-Flavio Cobolli (Italy)
Day session
12-Elina Svitolina (Ukraine) v Cristina Bucsa (Spain)
Night session
29-Frances Tiafoe (US) v Jason Kubler (Australia)
Olga Danilovic (Serbia) v Venus Williams (US)
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