Tension is seemingly rife inside Paris Saint-Germain’s dressing room after Ousmane Dembele delivered a withering verdict on the squad’s mentality following the team’s defeat over the weekend.
The European champions are struggling to emulate the form that secured an historic sextuple last term, with Luis Enrique’s side second in Ligue 1 behind Lens while they were forced to settle for a place in the play-off qualifiers in the Champions League.
Last season’s marathon campaign, which finished on July 13 at the Club World Cup final, has seemingly had a knock-on effect. The players were given three weeks off before they returned for pre-season training. They faced Tottenham in the UEFA Super Cup final on August 13.
Unsurprisingly, the relentless calendar has seen Enrique hit by a glut of injuries. Dembele, Desire Doue, Joao Neves and Bradley Barcola have all spent time on the sidelines, while recruitment has been underwhelming.
And after their 3-1 defeat by Rennes on Friday night, Ballon d’Or winner Dembele set tongues wagging after claiming that his team-mates are not pulling in the same direction.
‘We need to put Paris Saint-Germain first because if everyone plays for themselves, it won’t work,’ he told Ligue 1+.
Ousmane Dembele shed light on tensions within the PSG dressing room on Friday night
He claimed his team-mates aren’t working in unison, with pundits and fans believing his comments were aimed at Desire Doue
Luis Enrique has played down the remarks but it remains to be seen whether he will punish Dembele for tonight’s Champions League game against Monaco
‘Last season, we put the club above everything before thinking of ourselves. We need to rediscover that, especially in matches like this. It’s Paris Saint-Germain that needs to come first, not individuals.’
Those comments have naturally raised alarm bells inside the club, with Enrique fronting the press to downplay the ‘affair’, before addressing the subject during the team’s post-match debrief on Saturday morning.
According to L’Equipe, Enrique unequivocally told his stars that they must stick together no matter what, and that ‘dirty laundry is best washed within the family’ while he considers the matter closed.
But the French outlet add that Dembele’s comments have not been well-received by his team-mates. The club reportedly pay the same bonuses to players if they register a goal or assist, so to claim there has been a surge of individualism has bemused some.
Publicly, pundits and fans have hypothesised that the barbed comments were aimed at young team-mate Desire Doue, although Dembele has reportedly explained in private that he wasn’t targeting anybody specifically.
Enrique has been willing to punish Dembele in the past. When the pair clashed in 2024 following a heated exchange during a win over Rennes, the French forward was dropped for the following game against Arsenal.
It remains to be seen whether the Spaniard will follow suit for tonight’s Champions League clash against Monaco.
