Talented by name and by nature: PSG's Desire Doue

There is more than a touch of Neymar in the 19-year-old with the dazzling feet who lit up the first leg of the last-eight tie against Aston Villa with a magnificent goal at the Parc des Princes. Desire Doue's superb strike late in the first half was PSG's equaliser in a game they went on to win 3-1, leaving the French champions in a strong position before Tuesday's second leg.

They appear poised to reach the semi-finals for the second year running and are hoping to go all the way to the final in Munich in late May. That would be quite an achievement for PSG in their first season since the departure of Kylian Mbappe, who left for Real Madrid a year after fellow attacking superstars Lionel Messi and Neymar moved on.

PSG have now been transformed and are a team in which Doue is one of six players aged 22 or under to have made significant contributions in the Champions League, along with Bradley Barcola, Joao Neves, Nuno Mendes, Warren Zaire-Emery and Lucas Beraldo. An average age of 23.3 makes them the youngest in the competition, ahead of Barcelona's 24.15.

Doue was one of those brought in during last summer's transfer window, arriving from Rennes on a five-year deal for a reported 50 million euros ($56.9m). He had made 76 appearances for Rennes across the previous two campaigns, getting his debut aged 17 in August 2022. Yet Doue needed time to settle into his new surroundings, not least having played for Thierry Henry's France team on their run to the final of the Paris Olympics.

'Marvellous'

He started just four games for Luis Enrique's side in the first four months of the season, including in a 2-0 defeat by Arsenal in the Champions League. However, his progress since mid-December has been startling and has coincided with a remarkable run of form by his team.

PSG have lost once in 30 matches since late November, and that 1-0 home defeat by Liverpool in the Champions League last 16, first leg, ultimately did not matter as they won the tie on penalties, Doue scoring the decisive spot-kick.

Doue scored his first PSG goal in a 3-0 win at Salzburg on December 10 that kickstarted their European campaign. From that game on, the winger has scored 12 goals and set up 11 more in 28 appearances.

"I am really pleased with how much game time I am getting and I am really happy at Paris Saint-Germain," Doue told broadcaster 'TF1'. Doue, whose name translates as "talented", has quickly won over his teammates.

"He is a young player full of talent, and I think he will go very far. He is really mature for his age, but what impresses me the most is just how professional he is," Ousmane Dembele said on Monday.

Doue's elder brother Guela, with whom he played at Rennes, plays international football for Ivory Coast, the land of their father's birth. Desire, meanwhile, had his progress since moving to PSG rewarded when he was given his senior France debut last month.

He appears to have won over national team coach Didier Deschamps in the same way he has won over Luis Enrique with his thrilling style of play. "Any player who is prepared to take on opponents in the final third for me is marvellous," said Luis Enrique.

"Desire Doue is a specialist at going one against one. It's very difficult to play in tight spaces, but he has that capacity." Captain Marquinhos is the side's elder statesman at 30, and PSG are hoping the youthful exuberance of Doue and his teammates can make them the best team in Europe.

"PSG have the young players who in the next five or 10 years are going to be the best in world football," their former Argentinian star Javier Pastore told 'AFP', in an ominous message for their rivals.