A project that could be destined to fail
Paris couldn't be destroyed even on the orders of Hitler (or so the WW2 legends say). Military analogies aside, this PSG side could finally make it happen after their 3-1 loss in Madrid.
Over the last five years, almost €1,000million has been spent on new signings and PSG is still a long way from being able to compete with Europe's big boys. Against a Madrid side experiencing one of their worst seasons on record, the French squad choked again.
In France they are sure that the project in Paris, bankrolled by Qatar, is close to imploding. Paris could combust if Real Madrid emerge victorious after the second leg at the Parc des Princes. The Champions League is the ultimate goal for the people funding PSG.
There are rumours of rifts beginning to form within PSG. The first concerns the decisions of Unai Emery himself. As with the 6-1 against Barcelona last year, the Basque manager seemed out of his depth. His selection and his substitutions both left a lot to be desired, particularly bringing Thomas Meunier on for Edinson Cavani.
The loss could also be blamed on the absence Angel di Maria, who remained on the bench, ultra motivated for a game against his former employers and in excellent form. Thiago Silva's message did not help matters, hours after he learnt that he would not be starting.
"The dressing room is a family," Silva said a few days ago. But there are players who have admitted in public, such as Adrien Rabiot, that there are footballers 'with priviledges', such as Mbappe and Neymar.
Another sign that everything is not rosy in Paris: Mbappe and Neymar did not complete a pass to Cavani at the Bernabeu. Not one ball came to the Uruguayan striker, PSG's top scorer, from his attacking companions.
Marked by their complaints against referee Gianluca Rocchi, PSG is clearly hurt and drawing closer to a seismic change. "It's easy to score eight against Dijon..", Rabiot lamented, scorer in Madrid and one of the most critical. The dressing room is a minefield that looks as if it might blow if Real Madrid advance to the quarter finals.