PARIS -- Paris Saint-Germain are potentially one win away from sealing their 12th Ligue 1 title after a 4-1 thrashing of Olympique Lyonnais which did not even require a full-strength starting XI as Kylian Mbappe started as a substitute along with Ousmane Dembele. The French superstar's replacement Goncalo Ramos did just fine with two first-half goals as part of a four-goal blitz which also saw Marco Asensio and Lucas Beraldo contribute towards a first-half masterclass at Parc des Princes.
In resting the likes of Mbappe, Dembele and Fabian Ruiz while Lucas Hernandez and Manuel Ugarte were out suspended, Luis Enrique revealed PSG's focus on potential UEFA Champions League glory now that the French giants are into the semifinals where they will face Borussia Dortmund. The heroic midweek success away at Barcelona to emerge from the quarterfinals 6-4 on aggregate despite trailing 3-2 after the first leg was celebrated by the home fans who were treated to an attacking spectacle.
Ramos, overlooked for much of the first leg against Barca in Paris and all of the second in Catalonia, took his chance to impress with a pair of neat goals before halftime. Asensio reminded his coach what he is capable of with a goal and an assist after a forgettable first half of the first leg against the Blaugrana -- even if Nemanja Matic helped the ball in here. Beraldo also put his torrid opening leg behind him with his first-ever Parisien goal from a Bradley Barcola assist who had no issue celebrating passionately in front of the Lyon fans despite being a former OL player.
What was emphatically stated by this PSG performance was that, now Ligue 1 is almost in the bag and the Coupe de France final has already been booked against this same Lyon side, the capital club are 100% focused on their two-legged European mission against Dortmund which starts in just over one week in Germany. Luis Enrique did not need to send out a full-strength XI against OL and probably does not need to do so against either FC Lorient or Le Havre AC which are now both games which could see PSG seal their latest Championnat crown against relegation-threatened sides.
⏸️ Halftime at the Parc! 🔴🔵
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) April 21, 2024
1⃣5⃣ minutes to breathe! 🥵#PSGOL 4-1 #Ligue1 pic.twitter.com/o1zH4ZYolX
Looking at the upcoming games, PSG should have a clean run at Dortmund as long as no key players get hurt between now and then while the games against Toulouse, OGC Nice and Metz should be more or less meaningless if Ligue 1 has been sewn up. If that is the case, then it will be ideal preparation for the domestic season-ending Coupe de France and a potential Champions League final in London which now has the club dreaming of another crack at success after their 2020 heartache.
Part of Luis Enrique's approach so far since his arrival in Paris has been to tinker with his formations and the timing of those experiments has often put the team in danger. The Spaniard is now expected to focus on keeping his strongest XI as fresh as possible so that they are ready for the Dortmund games as well as the Lyon rematch in Lille. The beauty of confirming the Ligue 1 title as early as this midweek in Lorient is that those experiments can take place domestically without any need to worry about the potential impact of a loss or two.
Sure, it might not suit Mbappe to sit out games between now and the end of the campaign, but the France international cannot deny that it has aided his ability to deliver at key moments in PSG's season and perhaps he finally sees the logic in Luis Enrique's tough love. At this stage in the term and with so much on the line, every player will be hopeful of playing their way into UCL contention for Dortmund and nobody will want to suffer an untimely injury -- especially if any Ligue 1 games lose their meaning after next week. The draw has opened up for PSG and they are determined to take their chance.
