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PSG look to establish themselves as European powerhouse

By Jake Fitzgerald-Marcin

PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 14: Zlatan Ibrahimovic of PSG walks on the pitch after the French Ligue betwee Paris Saint Germain and FC Nantes at Parc des Princes on May 14, 2016 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christian Liewig - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images )
PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 14: Zlatan Ibrahimovic of PSG walks on the pitch after the French Ligue betwee Paris Saint Germain and FC Nantes at Parc des Princes on May 14, 2016 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christian Liewig - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images ) /
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Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) are no longer content with domestic titles and are looking to establish themselves as a perennial powerhouse in European competition.

The Laurent Blanc era is over at Paris Saint-Germain. Yesterday Blanc’s agent announced that Blanc would be leaving the club by the end of the week even though he had just signed a two-year contract extension in February. It seems like PSG’s UEFA Champions League performance is the overriding factor in the decision.

There is no disputing that Blanc’s tenure at PSG was a success domestically, winning almost every piece of hardware French competition has to offer during his tenure (2013-2016). The problem that is causing him and PSG to part ways only months after he signed a two-year extension with the club is his inability to guide the French squad deep into Champions League play.

During his time in Paris, which spanned 3 Champions League seasons, the French giant never made it past the quarterfinals, meeting their demise there in all three campaigns.

PSG Celebrate French Cup Victory (2016)
(Photo by Christian Liewig – Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images) /

With all the money PSG have at their disposal, they feel that dominating the domestic competitions is no longer enough, so much so that PSG owner Nasser al-Khelaifi labeled this year a ‘failure’. Khelaifi said in an interview with The Guardian:

"“Honestly, I think we failed this season despite winning domestic trophies. We did not reach our goal so this is a bad season. I have been here for five years and it is the first time that we have this feeling of failure.”"

He also went into further detail about why he was disappointed with the Champions League exit, adding a jab at Blanc for, in his opinion, not having the players prepared for the second leg of the quarterfinals in Manchester.

"“It’s not just the fact that we lost in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, it’s the way it happened. I am very disappointed. I did not feel there was pressure before the City games. This elimination is the worst moment since I have been in Paris. Two hours before the return leg I knew we were going to lose. I did not feel the players were ready. Whose fault is this?”"

Because of this perceived ineffectiveness of Blanc on the European level, the club have decided to go in a new direction. The likely man to fill his shoes come next season is Unai Emery, former Sevilla manager who guided them to three straight Europa League titles from 2014-2016 before parting ways with them earlier this month.

PSG and their fans are hoping Emery will be able to come into Paris and continue his European success, this time in the Champions League. Obviously they also expect domestic titles to be rolling in, but they are hoping that those won’t even be of concern.

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Not only are they bringing in a manger with concrete European success to help establish themselves across the continent, they also have the transfer rumor mill swirling as fast as it can. So far this summer they have been linked with several high-profile players, including Neymar, N’Golo Kante, Juan Mata, and Joao Cancelo. (Stay Up to date with all PSG transfer news here!)

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If PSG are really looking to make themselves into a perennial powerhouse within the Champions League, they are most certainly doing it right. They have the plan and the money to be a contender in Europe, now all they have to do is convince players that it will work.

The only thing that could hold them back is the lack of competition domestically. While it might seem like an appeal to the average person that at PSG you are almost guaranteed domestic hardware every year, it might be a turn off to some players.

In most cases, in order to be considered one of the greats you usually must face solid competition. PSG are going to have to sell their Champions League ability hard to get top class players to come play in what could be argued is the 6th best league in Europe.

How the summer 2016 transfer window ends up for PSG will say a lot about how well this pitch will resonate with potential players and if they will be able to become a team that regularly plays for the Champions League trophy.

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