“I couldn’t tell you a name of a single Marseille player,” said Dani Alves before Sunday night’s classique. Paris Saint-Germain players have long been a cliquey, ego-driven and even smug group, but their collective cockiness has begun to overflow since the summer. As France’s premier domestic fixture approached, the Paris half of Ligue 1’s most famous rivalry seemed uninterested. As Thomas Meunier put it, French football’s showpiece was “nothing special”.
When Neymar and Kylian Mbappé arrived in the summer, it was difficult to see how other French clubs would stop them from disappearing over the horizon with every domestic honour going. The only problem is that Unai Emery’s players also seem to believe that and, in recent weeks, this assumption has noticeably affected their displays. As a smirking Neymar trudged from the Vélodrome pitch, having been sent off with his side trailing 2-1 to Marseille, it seemed as if that arrogance had finally taken over.
It was an unimpressive end to an unimpressive week for Neymar, who started training on Tuesday morning trying to surreptitiously nutmeg his team-mates. Having failed on Marquinhos, he slipped the ball through the legs of a politely amused Thiago Silva and then wildly celebrated his achievement before jokingly blocking the club captain’s warm-up runs. Neymar proceeded to half-heartedly jog along behind his colleagues, barely following the example of his coaches, doing everything at his own, slow pace. According to L’Equipe, he also had a row with Emery at training later in the week.
Despite some effervescent early displays, the team’s free-flowing attacking play and intensity has waned over the last few weeks as they have become disjointed. Their sheer weight of talent, coupled with Monaco’s current deficiencies, means they sit four points clear at the top of Ligue 1 but their form is stuttering. Having started the season with six straight wins, they drew with Montpellier a few weeks ago and have relied on late goals to nick a win at Dijon and now a draw at Marseille.
Neymar’s influence has rapidly declined. Upon his arrival, he insisted he simply wanted to “help the team”. He has scored 10 goals in all competitions but he does not look motivated by helping the team – or even being a part of the team. Their season has become, perhaps inevitably, all about him.
A puerile onfield spat with Edinson Cavani over penalties and free-kicks during the win over Lyon last month reportedly had the Brazilian demanding that the club sell his team-mate. Silva and Marquinhos had to intervene before punches were thrown between the two men in the dressing room and Cavani was then supposedly offered a huge bonus to relinquish his penalty duties. Neymar eventually apologised for his childish behaviour but, when the next penalty was awarded, Neymar was anointed by Emery to take it.
His selfish, insolent attitude is affecting his performances. Despite the ferocious atmosphere and intense first half at the Vélodrome, he ambled through the game, continually stopping to put his foot on the ball and robbing attacks of momentum, repeatedly looking to beat the Marseille defence on his own. He only seemed half-interested, even as he equalised.
His indifference turned to petulance after Marseille took the lead for a second time in the 78th minute from a Florian Thauvin volley. After being involved in a number of minor spats and niggly fouls throughout the game, he picked up a late booking for a challenge on Morgan Sanson. A few minutes later he was tripped by Marseille winger Lucas Ocampos and reacted by squaring up to Ocampos. Ocampos, of course, greatly exaggerated any contact, but a second yellow was warranted and duly arrived. It was a foolhardy and selfish act that would have cost his team the game had Cavani not scored a terrific injury-time free-kick – an ironic coincidence considering Neymar was not on the pitch to pull rank.
Neymar’s individualistic nature is spreading, perhaps most worryingly to Mbappé. The 18-year-old also started the season in scintillating style but this consistency has evaporated in recent weeks; he is missing clear chances, trying to take on too many defenders and making poor decisions. This could be a nature product of his youth but, as Marquinhos noted, Neymar has a big influence on Mbappé. “Neymar knows how important he is for Kylian,” said Marquinhos. “As Messi was important for him and Ronaldinho was important for Messi.” It was an odd comparison to make considering Pep Guardiola famously let Ronaldinho leave Barcelona so he did not overly influence Messi with his playboy lifestyle.
Mbappé’s fluctuating form aside, the arrogance of new boys Neymar and Alves has perpetuated a feeling of disrespect: disrespect for Ligue 1, disrespect for le classique and even a disrespect for Paris Saint-Germain. They are still likely ease to the Ligue 1 title – Cavani’s superb free-kick was just the latest example of their individual quality – but their performance against Marseille shows their new signings’ arrogance could become toxic. Marseille were dogged, their manager Rudi García was bold and they deserved at least a point.
After the game Mbappé admitted that his team “did not give le classique the importance it deserved.” Perhaps they will learn from this and their attitude will improve but, if Emery does not assert his authority, the arrogance of a few prominent players could destabilise what had, finally, promised to be a watershed season.
Ligue 1 talking points
• Lyon, with Nabil Fékir nursing a back injury, turned up in a 4-3-3 against Troyes, with Houssem Aouar dropped into midfield. The youngster was impressive again, having played that role well against Everton, but of greater note was Memphis Depay, who scored his first ever hat-trick in a 5-0 win that took Lyon to fourth in the table. Troyes looked disinterested in the second half but the Dutchman’s finishes from his two goals from open play were sublime. Add in a Panenka penalty for his third, and it’s clear he was enjoying himself in a freer left-wing/No10 role during his best performance since joining Lyon in January. However, Fékir was fit enough for the bench and will be back to reclaim his place soon enough, eager to prove Didier Deschamps wrong in time for November’s internationals. Bruno Génésio will have a real dilemma on his hands when his captain returns.
• Michel der Zakarian was seen as a dull and uninspiring appointment for Montpellier but the way he has guided them through a seemingly troublesome quartet of fixtures has been massively impressive. Friday’s win at Saint-Étienne comes after a win at home to Nice and draws against Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain. Emerged from that run of fixtures with eight points is a real feat and shows he was right to play three at the back. Montpellier’s 40-year-old captain Hilton has rolled back the years, continuing to be a powerful yet elegant presence in the heart of defence, aided by the mobility of Pedro Mendes and Daniel Congré to either side of him. Benjamin Lecomte is similarly deserving of praise, as is the efficient midfield partnership of Ellyes Skhiri and Paul Lasne, but the team’s work ethic and solidity under their new boss means that Europe, rather than survival, may be a realistic aim.
• “I don’t want to talk about injustice, but our team has a lot of merit, even if can’t get the better of opponents. Today, our team defended well, but it attacked poorly.” That was Marcelo Bielsa’s assessment of Lille’s 1-0 defeat to fellow struggler Rennes. They are now second from bottom, having failed to score in six of their last nine games. It doesn’t help that three of their players were instrumental in setting other Ligue 1 teams up for victory. Martin Terrier, on loan at Strasbourg, set up one of Nuno Da Costa’s two goals in a 2-1 victory at Nice, while Xeka did the same for Dijon in their vital win at Metz, with Naim Sliti scored the winner early in the second half. All have been superb this season, with Sliti in particular ensuring that Dijon’s attack hasn’t suffered too greatly in the absences of Lois Diony and Pierre Lees-Melou. Coupled with the late sale of Nicolas De Préville (who remains Lille’s leading scorer two months on from moving to Bordeaux), the strong performances of this trio of loanees have further called into question the wisdom of Bielsa. Not only do the players he has signed, at no small cost, appear to be struggling, but the players he let go are succeeding and even improving elsewhere in the division.
• Metz were on the wrong end of a 2-1 home defeat to Dijon, another side fighting against relegation, on Saturday. With this result coming on the heels of their last home match, a 1-0 loss to Troyes, things are looking grim indeed for the club, who have dismissed Philippe Hinschberger. Results have not been good – they have lost nine of their 10 matches so far this season – but Hinschberger was a popular figure at the club. They only finished six points above the relegation zone last season and were indebted to the goalscoring prowess Cheick Diabaté, who scored eight goals in 12 starts on loan but wasn’t retained permanently this summer despite Metz having money from the sale of the young winger Ismaila Sarr. Instead, Emmanuel Rivière and Nolan Roux were brought in; they have combined for just four goals in more than a thousand minutes played. Metz were able to avoid relegation last year on the strength of a half-decent attack but now, without a reliable goalscorer, they are not only bottom of the league but have France’s poorest attack. Hinschberger had perhaps run out of rope, as discipline has been an issue as well, but the club’s hierarchy, seemingly well-positioned four months ago with the lucrative sale of Sarr, should be taking more of the blame.
Ligue 1 results
St-Étienne 0-1 Montpellier
Monaco 2-0 Caen
Angers 0-1 Toulouse
Nantes 2-1 Guingamp
Rennes 1-0 Lille
Amiens 1-0 Bordeaux
Metz 1-2 Dijon
Nice 1-2 Strasbourg
Troyes 0-5 Lyon
Marseille 2-2 PSG