Paris Saint-Germain started their quest for their fourth major trophy of the season by dominating Atlético de Madrid 4-0 in Los Angeles at the game opener of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
The French team have already won the Ligue 1 title, Coupe de France and UEFA Champions League during a historic 2024/25 campaign. Head coach Luis Enrique utilized his strength in depth to make up for the absence of their injured star forward Ousmane Dembele, who has scored 33 goals in 49 matches for PSG this season.
Both Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia impressed up front, as the kings of Europe as Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, Senny Mayulu, and Lee Kangin scored for PSG, giving the team confidence to prepare for their second game of the tournament against Brazil’s Botafogo.
Luis Enrique shocks PSG players
Luis Enrique has become one of the best soccer head coaches in the world, with the former Spaniard player winning the Champions League twice – Barcelona in 2015, and PSG recently -, as well as multiple league titles, including La Liga and Ligue 1.
The former La Roja midfielder and striker has a unique coaching approach that involves a lot of intense pressing combined with tactical flexibility… and he’s not afraid of using different techniques to get the feel of the game. One in particular shocked his players during a practice.
Luis Enrique appeared shirtless and without soccer cleats, which immediately took the PSG team by surprise. The practice is called grounding, a technique that involves doing activities that “ground” or electrically reconnect a person to the earth. The person has a direct contact with the soil, creating a pathway between the body and the ground. It works as a therapeutic practice that can have a positive effect on the body.
Luis Enrique talked about the heat in Los Angeles
Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique spoke to the media after the 4-0 victory over Atlético Madrid in the first match of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup group stage at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, United States, on Sunday.
“My feeling is that it was harder than the scoreboard suggests. It was very hot out there! We’re happy and we’re continuing our positive run. It was a very good match. The atmosphere? We really enjoyed it. It’s a very positive thing to have that feeling, to feel the support of the fans. We have to keep going. We have to improve and keep this momentum going. It’s a different competition, but a very attractive one.”
Luis Enrique added that the FIFA Club World Cup has a big future and could become a reference, so PSG wants to win their matches in the international tournament and make it to the championship game.
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