PSG boss quiet on Brazil star’s future but excited by the club’s midfield captures from the Premier League
Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel has deflected talk on Neymar’s future and instead enthused about his reshaped midfield.
The PSG manager believes new recruits Ander Herrera and Idrissa Gueye both have different qualities and will give him increased options for the new campaign.
Speaking after the 3-0 pre-season win over Sydney FC on Tuesday he commented: “There is nothing new [to report] about Neymar. For me, he is our player, we train with him. It’s a question for the the club and Neymar. For me, he’s in the dressing room, he’s training, he’s still my player. There is nothing new.”
Tuchel was more forthcoming on his new midfield additions after previous complaints about the lack of depth in his squad last season.
After seeing the deal for former Everton man Gueye over the line, Tuchel enthused: “I’m very happy with his arrival. It’s no secret that we tried to sign him in the winter.
“He’s a player with a lot of quality and determination and they’re features that we need.”
Tuchel also moved to answer concerns that Gueye and former Manchester United midfielder Herrera are similar and could not feature together.
“They are not the same type of player. They don’t play in the same position.
“Herrera is a No.8, a box-to-box player. Gueye is a holding midfielder, who gives us the opportunity to play with only one player in front of the defence.
“His best position, for me, is No.6 but he can also play with another player alongside him [in central midfield]. His ability to recover the ball means he’s a different type of player to Herrera.”
Tuchel is hopeful Gueye will be available for PSG’s French Ligue 1 opener against Nimes on August 11, despite a busy summer with Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations, where his country were beaten in the final by Algeria.
“I hope he’ll have enough time to recover. He should be back with us around the time of the first Ligue 1 game.”
The PSG boss also hinted that his recruitment for the new season may not be finished.
“I’ve never finished a transfer window at the end of July. Things can be crazy in football,” he added.
Tuchel also answered questions over why Neymar has not featured in recent pre-season games.
“It would have been a big risk,” he explained. “When we travelled to Macau he’d not trained. From a medical point of view we decided it was a big risk to play him so he stayed at home in Shenzhen to improve his fitness.
“It would have been the same here in Suzhou [against Sydney]. He and [Presnel] Kimpembe will train on Wednesday for the first hour with the team.”
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