Paris St Germain head coach Luis Enrique has urged his side to cope with the additional expectation that comes with kicking off the defence of their first Champions League title against Atalanta on Wednesday.
PSG go into the game on the back of a strong start to the new Ligue 1 campaign, and with memories still vivid of their stunning 5-0 win over Inter Milan in last year’s final at the end of May.
And while Enrique admitted ending the club’s long quest for Europe’s biggest title was the hard part, he has warned against any sense of complacency against the experienced Italian outfit.
Enrique told a press conference: “I think that your first Champions league is always the hardest one to win.
“Sometimes the players and fans don’t think they’re capable of winning a trophy like that, but now, they know it’s possible – we’re capable of winning the Champions League.
“We’re the European champions, and for Paris as a club, for Paris St Germain as a club and for these fans, our aim is to win a second Champions League in order to make even more history.
“It will be very difficult for us to do so, but we need to be ambitious and to always think about how to improve. That is our mentality.”
Atalanta made a relatively slow start to life in Serie A under new head coach Ivan Juric, but a 4-1 win over Lecce on Sunday kick-started their campaign to give them confidence ahead of the trip to Paris.
“Atalanta changed their manager this summer, so it will be difficult for us to predict how they will play, but just like in previous seasons, we’re talking about a tough team with quality players,” added Enrique.
“It’s always hard to play against Italian teams. We need to adapt to our opponents’ playing style, but that’s one of our qualities, and tomorrow’s game will be about managing to do so.”
