Vinicius Junior to PSG, Kone to Arsenal

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It was a thrilling game between PSG and Barcelona last night, but of course not the result Luis Enrique’s side will have wanted as the visitors edged an open game 3-2. It was perhaps not quite the result many would have expected, and it was probably also not the kind of game many will have had down as such an open one that would end as a five-goal thriller.

It was almost multiple matches within one game, which was really intriguing. PSG started really well, buoyed by a great atmosphere at the Parc des Princes, but then Barca really took control in the first half, while PSG then flipped the game on its head early in the second half, with two goals in 134 seconds, which completely shifted the momentum of the game.

Barcelona then hit back again with a comeback of their own, and there were some sliding doors moments in there as well, particularly when Ousmane Dembele hit the post. But in general it left a lot of questions for PSG. It was not the best performance from the team, and particularly from Gianluigi Donnarumma – that’s not going to help him as he attempts to respond to the criticism he’s had, even though he’s mostly been in quite good form in the last couple of months.

But probably the one facing the most questions ahead of next week’s second leg will be Luis Enrique, because apart from the fact that Achraf Hakimi was out and had to be replaced by Marquinhos, who actually played quite solidly at right-back – it’s decisions elsewhere that will have raised eyebrows. Playing Lucas Hernandez on the right-hand side of central defence really didn’t work out at all, but to be fair to him that’s partly because Lucas Beraldo was in real difficulty for much of the match. Still, for Hernandez to then also be playing in a position he’s not really familiar with or been used in that often didn’t help PSG.

Enrique then made some in-game decisions to try and change these strange choices he made in his starting XI, with Marquinhos playing central in the second half, while Hernandez got moved to right-back, which is a bit baffling as he normally plays left-back. This completely destabilised the defence, so it’s not too surprising that the stand-out performer in PSG’s…