PSG keep low profile while preparing for life without Mbappe

PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain are beginning a new era following the departure of Kylian Mbappe and the reigning French champions have so far kept a low profile as they prepare for life without the superstar forward.

Mbappe moved to Real Madrid when his contract expired in June, ending a prolific seven-year association with the Qatar-owned club in which he struck a remarkable 256 goals to become their all-time top scorer.

The France captain therefore leaves an enormous void, so big that PSG appear to have decided there is no one player who could possibly fill it adequately.

Coach Luis Enrique takes his team to Normandy to face Le Havre on Friday on the opening night of the new Ligue 1 campaign without any glitzy new signing having arrived to directly replace Mbappe.

PSG have nevertheless spent money in Europe’s summer transfer window, and they may still move for a top-class striker before the deadline at the end of the month.

Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, who previously starred in Ligue 1 for Lille, has been linked with a move to the French capital, although it is unclear whether he would fit in with Luis Enrique’s preferred style of football.

For now, though, PSG’s efforts in the transfer market have been focused elsewhere, with an estimated 125 million euros ($132.2m) invested on three players.

Nineteen-year-old Portuguese midfield prodigy Joao Neves, who appeared for his country at Euro 2024, has arrived from Benfica for 59.9 million euros, a fee which could rise by 10 million euros when bonuses are factored in.

The defence has been strengthened with the recruitment of Ecuador centre-back Willian Pacho, 22, from Eintracht Frankfurt for up to 45 million euros.

PSG’s first summer signing was the Russian goalkeeper Matvey Safonov, 25, from Krasnodar in his homeland for a reported 20 million euros. He will provide competition for first-choice custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Irreplaceable 

Meanwhile, Mbappe apart, the Parisians have kept hold of the spine of their team from last season and have also incorporated teenage Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Moscardo after signing him from Corinthians in January but allowing him to stay there on loan for six more months.

French international wingers Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola will be expected to build on impressive performances last season, while the hope is that Randal Kolo Muani and Goncalo Ramos — scorers of 23 goals between them in the last campaign — will step up to help fans forget Mbappe.

The days of signing veteran stars like Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos are a thing of the past, and captain Marquinhos, 30, is likely to be the oldest member of the starting line-up this season.

The only really glamorous name to pose with a PSG shirt alongside President Nasser Al Khelaifi this summer has been NBA star Kevin Durant, who has invested in the club.

“He is obviously a different player and we can’t replace him with one single player. Forget it. There is no substitute for Kylian Mbappe,” Luis Enrique admitted in May, just after his team finished the season by defeating Lyon in the French Cup final to complete a domestic double.

“We will need to replace him with the team as a whole, and with maybe four, five or six new signings.”

PSG’s transfer business is surely not over yet, but for now they will ease themselves back into the season.

It is not just in the market that PSG have kept a low profile, for they have also had a quiet pre-season.

There has been no energy-sapping summer tour to the United States or Asia, with Luis Enrique instead keeping his squad at their training base outside Paris.

They have played just two friendly matches, drawing away to Austrian champions Sturm Graz and RB Leipzig in Germany.

Luis Enrique perhaps saw little point in playing too many games given so many of his players returned to training late after being involved at Euro 2024, the Copa America or the Olympics.

The aim will be to get his side in peak condition by the time the Champions League begins in September, by which time a new attacking option may have been added.