This week marks the true beginning of the new season for Paris Saint-Germain as they commence their Champions League title defense, amidst concerns about their ability to endure the demands of a packed schedule.
PSG will face Atalanta on Wednesday in their first European match, three and a half months after their remarkable 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in last season’s final in Munich.
Under Luis Enrique, PSG will also face Bayern, Tottenham Hotspur, and Newcastle United in the league phase, with upcoming trips to Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen, Athletic Bilbao, and Lisbon to play Sporting.
These are challenging fixtures, but PSG’s shaky start in last season’s Champions League suggests they might not need to peak immediately.
The French champions lost three out of eight league phase games last year, yet they clinched their first European elite club title following an impressive streak from the new year.
However, there is a concern that last season’s efforts might catch up with them and threaten their chances of retaining the trophy.
During the 2024/25 season, PSG played 65 matches over 11 months, including 17 in the Champions League and seven in the Club World Cup, ending with a 3-0 defeat to Chelsea in mid-July.
Just three weeks later, they resumed pre-season training and then kicked off the new season against Tottenham in the Uefa Super Cup a week after.
Fast forward a month, and PSG—having won the Super Cup on penalties—are victorious in their first four Ligue 1 games, but the physical toll seems evident.
Ballon d’Or frontrunner Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue are sidelined for weeks with muscle injuries from playing for France, while Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Lee Kang-in, and Lucas Beraldo were injured in a 2-0 win over Lens.
“It’s something everyone faces. It’s a challenging period for us with many injuries,” said Luis Enrique, who also has a fractured collarbone from a cycling mishap.
“I’m staying calm and confident we’ll get through it.”
PSG’s good fortune with injuries last season was not mere luck, largely due to the coach’s management of the squad.
Hakimi in the Red Zone?
Nineteen PSG players clocked over 1,000 minutes in 2024/25, similar to Real Madrid and Barcelona.
However, the Club World Cup, often played in intense heat and involving extensive travel across the United States, took its toll.
PSG used 19 players in that tournament, compared to Chelsea’s 27—the French team looked exhausted in the final and were overwhelmed.
If PSG reach the late stages of the Champions League again, they’re looking at playing at least 55 games this season, including the Fifa Intercontinental Cup in December.
Additionally, there’s a World Cup at the season’s end, with many PSG players participating.
The year will be especially demanding for Achraf Hakimi, who played the most minutes for PSG last season and will play a key role for Morocco as they host the Africa Cup of Nations in December and January.
Hakimi lacks a natural backup at right-back for PSG, who surprisingly didn’t add significant depth in the transfer window, signing only one new center-back, Illia Zabarnyi, while Lucas Chevalier replaced Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal.
“Injuries to star players are just a visible part of the workload crisis in professional football and are unsurprising,” FIFPro, the global players’ union, stated last week.
“The impact extends beyond players to clubs, national teams, fans, and competitions.”
Despite the worries, excitement is high at PSG as they defend their title in Europe.
“It’s a special moment. We understand the difficulty of this competition, but we’re relaxed and eager to perform well in our first game,” said Luis Enrique.
