Coach Enrique says PSG have ‘range of possibilities’

AFP | Paris

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Coach Luis Enrique says his Paris Saint-Germain team have a “range of possibilities” following the departure of Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid as they prepare for the start of the new season.

PSG begin life without Mbappe against Le Havre in the opening match of the Ligue 1 campaign on Friday. Luis Enrique accepts that his side will have to adjust after losing their record goalscorer, but points to the wealth of attacking options in his squad.

“This year in the team -- and it’s quite rare -- there are players capable of playing in many positions, Lee (Kang-In), (Marco) Asensio, Warren Zaire-Emery, I have endless possibilities in the middle and attack, that’s my difficulty,” the former Barcelona boss told a pre-match press conference yesterday. “We will have to change things compared to last season.

Before, we went towards goal and we all looked for the same player, Kylian, who had a natural ability to score. “Now a range of possibilities are open.” Mbappe, who scored on his Madrid debut in their UEFA Super Cup win over Atalanta on Wednesday, netted 44 goals in all competitions last term to help PSG win the Ligue 1 and French Cup double.

But Luis Enrique is confident the capital club can replace the France captain’s goals. “I will take the option that presents itself,” he said. “If someone scores 40 goals we will certainly not close the door on them. But in my experience it is better to have four attackers scoring 12 goals, which makes 48. “It’s an exciting challenge to show that football is a team sport. We can do it.”