PSG build empire or be destroyed?

PSG had a near-perfect season leading up to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final. However, a surprising 0-3 loss to Chelsea - an underdog - cost the club the chance to reach the top of the world , and they will have to wait another four years to return to this competition.

What is success?

In a world full of uncertainty, no one knows what PSG will be like in 4 years, who will still be at the Parc des Princes. However, fans know for sure that the club will face more challenges next season because everyone wants to chase them and Europe is full of teams capable of causing surprises like Chelsea.

The first question that will arise is what PSG will aim for as the season begins to be considered successful? Of course, they must successfully defend all the titles they currently have.

In the domestic league, it seems very easy for PSG to continue to win the trio of titles because in Ligue 1, the French Cup or the French Super Cup, there are no worthy opponents. In the last 2 seasons, PSG has won all these titles without letting any domestic glory go to another opponent.

The 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup later this year is also an easy title to win because PSG only has to play one final match against the South American champion or a continental champion. In fact, in this type of tournament, European teams have absolutely dominated since 2013. The European Super Cup will be more difficult when the opponent is Tottenham, and the developments on the field say that. However, PSG with their mettle overcame their opponent with a 4-3 victory on penalties, before that they drew 2-2 in the official match.

But the title that PSG fans are most interested in this new season is the Champions League and the world will be watching to see if PSG can defend this difficult title or not. If PSG can win all 5 titles above but not the Champions League, then they cannot be considered to have had a successful season.

Since the inception of the Champions League, only Real Madrid have successfully defended their title. AC Milan in the mid-1990s and Barcelona from 2009 to 2015 also failed to defend their European crown. So the second question is whether PSG is a stronger team than AC Milan and Barcelona in their heyday.

Defeat to Chelsea shows PSG can still lose on a bad day

Is PSG as strong as Milan or Barcelona in their heyday?

Last season, PSG set the limit for what a French team could do. In Ligue 1, they not only won the championship but also won the cup absolutely when they won 84 points after 34 rounds, 19 points ahead of second-placed Marseille. 84 points is not a small number when you know that Liverpool only had 84 points to win the English championship after 38 rounds. In fact, PSG could have won more points if they had not won the championship early and had not given up 2 rounds to lose to Nice (round 31 at the end of April) and Strasbourg (round 32 at the beginning of May) when they focused on the Champions League.

To get an overview of PSG's strength last season, we can look at their performance in all competitions. PSG played 65 matches (5 competitions, including the French Super Cup), won 48, drew 8 and lost 9, scored 168 goals, and conceded 59.

Many will wonder how PSG lost 9 matches. In addition to the 2 Ligue 1 losses mentioned above, PSG also lost 2 matches at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup - including a defeat to Botafogo in the group stage and a loss to Chelsea in the final. Surprisingly, PSG lost 5 matches in the Champions League last season. In the group stage, PSG lost 3 matches: lost 0-2 to Arsenal, lost 0-1 to Bayern Munich, lost 1-2 to Atletico. In the round of 16, PSG lost 0-1 to Liverpool in the first leg and in the quarter-finals, lost 2-3 to Aston Villa in the second leg.

Losing five games in the Champions League seems too much and makes people doubt their strength. In fact, the two losses to Liverpool and Villa in the knockout round are meaningless because PSG still won the match.

The three opponents that PSG lost to in the group stage were when they had not really adapted to the style of play while getting used to the absence of Kylian Mbappe. But when PSG ran everything smoothly, they went to each team to teach them a lesson about football.

In the Champions League semi-finals, PSG defeated Arsenal in both legs with scores of 1-0 and 2-1. With Atletico Madrid, PSG crushed them 4-0 in the group stage of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Finally, Bayern Munich was paid back by Luis Enrique's team when they won 2-0 in the quarter-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup.

Luis Enrique's PSG will face many challenges this season.

PSG's terror in Europe is also reflected in the fact that they have evolved and adapted to Enrique's tactics. If in the 5 group stage matches of the Champions League last season, PSG only scored 3 goals and lost 3, they scored 11 goals in the last 3 matches, scored 10 goals in 2 matches in the play-off round and the peak was defeating Inter Milan 5-0 in the final. After that, Real Madrid was also humiliated by PSG with a 4-0 victory in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Those results have given PSG the right to be proud that they are on par with Milan or Barcelona in their heyday. The confidence in a squad that runs so smoothly that PSG, who are used to spending money like water, do not have any notable names this summer.

However, a well-oiled squad does not guarantee continued success in Europe for PSG. They may be able to maintain their strength, but their opponents will not stand still. Barcelona will be a tough opponent in Hansi Flick's second season in charge. Unfortunately, PSG did not play Barcelona at the end of last season to see who had the better attack, but Barcelona's stars overshadowed PSG's stars in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals.

Real Madrid will undergo a major overhaul under Xabi Alonso. The 4-0 win over Real Madrid at the FIFA Club World Cup doesn't mean anything because Real Madrid were only under Alonso for a month. Don't forget Bayer Leverkusen, who were transformed from a relegation-threatened team into champions in a summer under Alonso.

In England, Liverpool will be much stronger in Arne Slot's second season. In the 2024/25 Champions League, "The Kop" only lost to PSG in a penalty shootout. Man City will no longer be as weak as before. And let's not forget to mention Chelsea, the team that gave PSG nightmares.

It is possible to see that PSG will continue to dominate France next season, but whether they will continue to be European champions is difficult to predict, even though the bookies rank them in the lead.

Source: https://znews.vn/psg-xay-de-che-hay-bi-phe-post1574346.html