PARIS – It took a while, but one of Paris Saint-Germain’s big summer signings is up and running after a week of well-deserved positivity against Red Bull Salzburg in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, which continued against Olympique Lyon in Ligue 1 on Sunday. . Désiré Doué hasn’t had the easiest start in the French capital since arriving from Stade Rennais in August, but the 19-year-old finally started to find his feet last week with three key goals to boost his confidence. .
After playing with the Blues at home in the 2024 Olympics and joining the Parc des Princes on that momentum, a single assist in a 3-1 away win over Lille OSC was all that talent born in Angers had to show. for his visit to Paris so far. Doue started the week as a substitute in the must-win UCL clash against Salzburg, in which he came on for around the final 24 minutes and helped Nuno Mendes make it 2-0 before finishing him -even the score at 3-0 after being replaced. assisted by Achraf Hakimi.
Buoyed by this positive performance, Luis Enrique inserted the Frenchman into his starting XI at home to Lyon in Sunday’s big box office match of the Championship in which he needed just eight minutes to allow Ousmane Dembele to open the scoring. Deprived of what could have been a sumptuous finish into the top corner in the second half by an offside flag, Doue finally went to Paris four months after his big move while Bayern Munich had also been contenders this summer.
“I wouldn’t say it was my night but more importantly it was the team’s night,” he said after the match after being named man of the match. “We continue in very good form. We managed to win the last Champions League match which was very important. We were able to create a lot of chances but also defend well, even if we conceded a goal. We put pressure very well and followed the tactics suggested by the coach. We pressed well and made things difficult. We made the game easier.
Luis Enrique made some big personal calls ahead of OL’s visit, including Randal Kolo Muani, Milan Skriniar and Presnel Kimpembe being completely ruled out and Doue was one of the players to benefit the most from Kolo Muani’s omission . Even more surprisingly, Goncalo Ramos and former Lyon star Bradley Barcola were left on the bench, giving the former Rennes man the opportunity to show Parisiens’ home fans a glimpse of what he is capable of when we give him the opportunity.
Now that that has been done, there is a real discussion to be had about how PSG will line up with Dembélé, Barcola, Ramos and now Doué able to muster far more in front of goal than the French giants have shown almost the whole season so far. . With AS Monaco coming to the Stade Louis II in midweek before a test clash in the Coupe de France at RC Lens, it’s a difficult time for Luis Enrique to deal with, but Doue offers him an additional solution that doesn’t seem not even be the case. just a week ago.
A goal and a few assists are unlikely to earn PSG’s number 14 an automatic starting spot, but it puts him in the mix for increased involvement ahead of a critical run of matches beyond Monaco and Lens. next week. The Monegasques — again — at the Champions Trophy in Qatar, AS Saint-Etienne in Paris and RCL on the road arrive again ahead of a massive Champions League visit to struggling Manchester City in a series that could define this campaign in the capital.
Doue didn’t seem likely to play a significant role until last week, but he is now well and truly part of the discussion and it is now up to him to increase that even further by maintaining his current form this winter. Considering the investment PSG committed to bringing in just a few months ago, it’s time Luis Enrique starts getting a return on that amount at a time when the Spaniard is facing criticism for rarely glancing at Kolo Muani despite its high price tag. label.
