Expectations are high, the start was bumpy. Can the PSG prestige project Messi – Neymar – Mbappé work out at all or is it doomed to failure? An analysis.
Actually, the investment has already paid off. For the Qatari owners of PSG, anyway. The plan to turn the club into a global brand despite the manageable appeal of Ligue 1, to generate maximum attention in every corner of the world, it never worked better than now. And the spearhead of this plan is called Messi, Neymar, Mbappé – in short: “MNM”.
One, Messi, is new; the other, Mbappé, has stayed on despite a 200-million offer from Madrid; and Neymar, who is much more than the protective swallow made flesh, is also still there. It has happened. And it works. Off the pitch, at least. Messi’s debut against Reims was the most-watched French league game in history, his first picture wearing a jersey at the Princes’ Park got the sixth most likes of any post ever on Instagram. Not only has Paris gathered three of the best footballers on the planet in one team, but also three of the widest-reaching.
Mauricio Pochettino shouldn’t care much about any of this. The PSG coach must form a functioning trio out of the three exceptional players. The beginning was marked by difficulties. Three egos with the claim to be the biggest star – can that work at all? That’s not an easy question to answer. Because several questions come to mind at once.
How did “MNM” harmonise until now?
In individual scenes very well. But not more. MNM” have played four games together and PSG have not really convinced in any of them. In the first appearance of the three in Bruges it even seemed as if they could manage better without each other. PSG’s play in the first half was completely tailored to Mbappé’s long passes, and Messi was completely cut off from the action at times.
It was only when Mbappé was replaced by wall player Mauro Icardi in the second half due to an injury that Messi suddenly came to life – the PSG game was now focused on him and his ball actions, no longer on Mbappé’s deep runs. Nevertheless, PSG never became compelling. “L’Equipe” called the performance “ghostly” afterwards, former Werder playmaker and current TV pundit Johan Micoud even said he had “not seen a team on the pitch” – and Pochettino thought: “We have to find an offensive organisation that brings creativity.” Given the individual qualities of the trio, also a kind of admission. Especially since he still hasn’t found the right organisation yet.
“We still have enough time for that,” the coach appeased. But is that the case? Neymar is constantly prevented from playing – as he is now ahead of the Champions League match against Leipzig today, Tuesday – by injuries, he and Messi also frequently miss league matches after their national team trips. And whether Pochettino will send his MNM Ferrari out on the wet against teams like Lorient or Brest? Unlikely.
