Football: Soccer-Luis Enrique’s experimental season brings PSG 12th Ligue 1 title and maybe more

(Reuters) – Paris St Germain won their 12th Ligue 1 title on Sunday, the first step in what manager Luis Enrique hopes will be an historic treble in a season which had threatened to be overshadowed by Kylian Mbappe’s imminent departure.

Luis Enrique has proven himself to be the perfect man for the job, at a time when the club is moving away from the “Galacticos” era, when it invested heavily in star players, and the Spaniard is not afraid of making unpopular choices in order to achieve his goals.

He inherited a squad undergoing major changes, with the departures of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Marco Verratti, while Mbappe and the club fell out before the season started over his refusal to renew his contract.

Mbappe was soon reinstated, but in February the forward informed the club he would be leaving at the end of this season, leaving the coach with a tricky situation to handle.

The former Barcelona boss has had no problem in benching Mbappe, or replacing him during games, and has stamped his authority on the club, making it clear that no player is more important than PSG.

They made a slow start, winning two of their first five league games, but once they got into gear and took charge domestically, PSG have switched focus to Europe, and have remained unbeaten in the league since their one loss in September.

Luis Enrique has spent much of the season experimenting. He tried different formations, moved players out of position, and announced surprising starting teams, and while the league title could have been wrapped up earlier, nobody is complaining.

While the experiments have not always paid off, his side are still on course for a treble, or a quadruple if you include the Trophee des Champions they won by beating Toulouse in January.

They play the French Cup final in May and have a Champions League semi-final with Borussia Dortmund to look forward to, having failed to reach the quarter-finals of Europe’s top club competition in the previous two seasons.

PSG already met the German club in the group stage, winning at home and drawing away, with Luis Enrique’s side squeaking through a tough group despite defeats by Newcastle United and AC Milan.

The Champions League has long been a target for the club, and the manager has rotated his side to keep his top players, including Mbappe, fresh for Europe, and his plan has worked.

Mbappe will need replacing next season, or at least his goals will – the 25-year-old has netted 43 times in 44 games – but that is something Luis Enrique will worry about when the time comes.

The future can be built around young players such as Warren Zaire-Emery, Bradley Barcola, Manuel Ugarte and Lee Kang-in.

For now, there are still trophies to be won, the fans are back onside, and PSG finally have a team rather than a collection of talented individuals. Whatever else this season brings, Luis Enrique’s debut campaign promises a bright future.

(Reporting by Trevor Stynes; Editing by Christian Radnedge and Toby Davis)