Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique admits that he had Liverpool in the brain all weekend prior to their decisive Champions League showdown.
The Reds jerked the victory in Paris last week due to a late Harvey Elliott goal and will take the narrowest benefits in the second stage of the crucial last-16-important game of Tuesday evening in Anfield.
PSG is clear in the rankings of Ligue 1 when we approach the business end of the season, but an early exit from Europe would seriously pour the mood in the Parc des Princes. They were expected to go deep into the competition, so failure to do the quarterfinals would not be conceived lightly.
Enrique and PSG know that only a victory over MerseSide is sufficient if they want to keep their own hope of European glory alive.
And while Enrique stated that he did not overlook their Ligue 1 -collision with Rennes at the weekend, he admitted that Liverpool caught part of his attention.
“I lied to you. Of course I think of Liverpool, just like everyone else, “he said after watching PSG on Saturday with 4-1. “I have been thinking about the matches against Liverpool for a while since the trek.
“But I also think that I all have to emphasize my team, my players, the mentality of all players in the team, all. Those who play, those who play less, those who do not participate. I think that to be able to compete, to fight for all titles and represent a club like ours, they have the right mentality. And it's a pleasure for me to coach them. “
PSG managed to withstand their domestic tasks in the weekend intact, which means that Enrique has no new selection problems for midweek.
The same 22 men who were compiled from PSG last week will travel to Liverpool with a view to disturbing the Arne Slot team, who will soon become one of the favorites to go all the way in this year's new look competition after the top of the group phase.
Enrique continued: “I think all players are in order. There are no injuries. The result is excellent against a team that made it difficult for us, but we have achieved our goal.
“The first stage does not leave us any options: we have to win, that is the goal. Nothing will change compared to the other matches, we play to win, but that is the goal. “
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