Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola, wingers serving Kylian Mbappé

Kylian Mbappé will spearhead the Parisian attack against Real Sociedad on Wednesday. Around him, the Parisian striker will count on the dazzling performances of Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola.

There is no longer room for doubt, Kylian Mbappé will be there. Left to rest during the last match against Lille on Saturday (3-1), after a nasty tackle received against Brest last week in the Coupe de France (3-1), the Frenchman will start, Wednesday February 14, for the eighth of Paris Saint-Germain’s first leg final in the Champions League, against Real Sociedad. His presence was confirmed on Tuesday by Luis Enrique, the Parisian coach, at a press conference.

“I believe that when a team has a player of the rank of Kylian Mbappé, the only thing you have to understand is that the more he plays, the better it is for the team“, launched the Spaniard, dispelling the last doubts about the participation of the striker. The latter, author of 38% of PSG’s goals this season, will count on the attack front on the services of his two compatriots, Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola, who should also start the match as starters.

This trio was not obvious at the start of the season, at least with regard to the presence of Barcola and the positioning of Mbappé. The right side seemed well and truly promised to Ousmane Dembélé after his arrival last summer from FC Barcelona. The winger of the French team has suffered numerous criticisms, particularly in the heart of autumn, due to a statistical record inversely proportional to the differences he creates with the ball.

Dembélé and Mbappé, a relationship that is being refined

His influence in PSG’s game, however, remains essential and Luis Enrique praised Saturday evening, after the victory against Lille in Ligue 1, his “constancy and regularity“.”He is one of the best signings of the season and a vital player for us.” “It’s not just the goals that count.”Dembélé defended himself to The Team at the beginning of November, while the winger has only scored once with PSG this season.

His link with the right side, Achraf Hakimi, is one of the great strengths of PSG. Dembélé has also been able to extend his good performances in recent weeks, with several assists, including three for Mbappé. On the pitch, the winger tends to develop a closeness with the native of Bondy by realigning himself, to leave room on the wing for Hakimi. The complete opposite of Barcola, its counterpart on the left side.

The former Lyon player, who is only 21 years old, is the real offensive surprise this season in Paris. When the PSG transfer market closed with the signing in the last hours of the transfer window of Randal Kolo Muani, we imagined the capital club starting the final phase of the C1 with a tricolor trio composed of the former Eintracht Frankfurt striker, Dembélé and Mbappé.

The complicated first months of Kolo Muani in Paris – and those of Gonçalo Ramos, the other top striker recruited last summer by PSG – convinced Luis Enrique to reposition Mbappé as number 9. Barcola took advantage of this to to interfere in the mind of his coach as a credible option at the left winger position, while the Spanish technician once again underlined on Saturday “very rapid adaptation” from the international Espoirs to PSG.

Barcola and Dembélé, not stingy with defensive efforts

Barcola’s first outings were marked by a form of clumsiness, like his entry into play against Newcastle (1-1), during the 5th day of the C1 group stage. In less than half an hour, the Frenchman created four huge situations which he overcame. But the winger subsequently convinced more by bringing depth to the Parisian game – his goal against Lens (2-0) illustrates this -, thanks to his sense of dribbling and his good understanding with Mbappé.

Holder since the beginning of December, Barcola must still erase some youthful errors, such as his exclusion against Brest on January 28 in Ligue 1 (2-2), after receiving two yellow cards in two minutes. This match against Real Sociedad appears to him to be a good test to see if he can raise his level of play a notch and make the difference in the final phase of the Champions League, which he is discovering this year.

Like Dembélé – whose pressing allowed PSG to score two goals in the last matches -, Barcola spares no effort in his lane to provide valuable defensive support to Lucas Hernandez and Paris. A significant asset against a Real Sociedad team that likes to hold the ball. “It’s very simple: you have to take the ball from them as quickly as possible and you have to try not to lose it“, warned Luis Enrique at a press conference on Tuesday.

Like Dembélé, Barcola must be more decisive against opposing goals: he has only scored two goals this season. But this task should fall more to Mbappé, who hopes to take advantage of the sense of the imbalance of the two arrows on the sides. If PSG goes far in the Champions League this season and beats Real Sociedad this Wednesday, it will certainly owe it in large part to this French attacking trio.