In the world of football, time is an elusive concept. All relevant parties — players, coaches, sports directors, presidents and shareholders — are eager to control time. They also agree that when an opportunity comes, it must not be wasted. At Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Luis Enrique has a completely different understanding of time.
The Spaniard is well aware of the importance of team results, but since taking office in 2023, he has successfully transformed the club into a place full of pressure where everyone knows they must not show the slightest weakness.
It is against this background that Lucas Chevalier has ushered in his debut season at PSG. Despite making mistakes and facing criticism, Luis Enrique has always had full confidence in the goalkeeper. Neither Chevalier’s injury-induced departure in the match against Monaco (0-1) on November 29 nor Alexandr Safonov’s excellent performance in three consecutive starts can change this. The Spanish coach does not want to overspecialize this period: everything remains the same, and there is no need to pay more attention to the French goalkeeper’s emotions than usual.
"When you try to manage players individually, you always encounter some special situations," Luis Enrique explained at a press conference on Saturday. "But for Lucas, I haven’t had any talks with him or done anything special, because I think the situation is clear: we have three very good goalkeepers, and I am very satisfied, as is the team.
We pursue having high-level players, and they also give 100% effort to the team. In adversity, they have shown their personality and character. This is crucial for a PSG player."
The former Spain national team coach also uses these moments to test the players’ ability to react and observe how they cope in adversity. He intends to treat Chevalier the same way he treated Gianluigi Donnarumma last season — except that Chevalier is his first choice, unlike the Italian goalkeeper who now plays for Manchester City.
The French goalkeeper feels his ankle injury has fully recovered and he is still the team’s No.1 goalkeeper, but he still needs to draw strength from the experiences of the past few weeks, knowing that coach Luis Enrique will not hesitate to field the in-form Safonov at times.
For now, Safonov’s injury — a broken left hand that will keep him out for another three weeks — has temporarily resolved this issue. Although Chevalier does not think being on the bench is a good thing, he has not shown any dissatisfaction at the club. He spent time with his family during the break and rested well.
Privately, he insists he is feeling very good. The French international (1 cap) is surprised by PSG’s difficult situation and the criticism he considers overly harsh, but he understands Luis Enrique’s thinking. Now he knows he has time to prove that the coach’s trust is justified.
