PSG boss Luis Enrique makes prediction for second leg after ‘unfair’ Liverpool loss | Football

Luis Enrique felt his Paris Saint-Germain team deserved to beat Liverpool on Wednesday night and ‘of course’ they will win the second leg after a 1-0 defeat in France.

PSG were thoroughly impressive against the Premier League leaders in the first leg of the last 16 at the Parc des Princes.

They created many more chances than Liverpool but Reds goalkeeper Alisson Becker was in stunning form, making a string of top stops.

Arne Slot’s team did not have many chances themselves, but they took one of them as Harvey Elliott came off the bench to score on the break 87 minutes into the match.

The home side had 27 shots to Liverpool’s two and dominated possession, with the likes of Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz extremely quiet.

Enrique felt that the result was an injustice but would not allow his confidence to be rocked as his team prepare for a huge second leg at Anfield next week.

‘My feelings right now…it’s difficult to think about the match in a positive way because I think we deserved to win, clearly. We created a lot of chances,’ the Spaniard told TNT Sports.

‘I think it’s one of the best matches that we did in the Champions League this season.

‘When you think that the best player of Liverpool was their goalkeeper, Alisson, football is many times unfair and we have to accept that. But, we are ready to [go to] Liverpool!

‘We don’t have anything to lose. I think we’ve overcome Liverpool. Liverpool is the best team in Europe and today they almost create one or two chances maximum and we created a lot. I feel proud of my players, my team, of the supporters.

‘Top players, top quality, top quality team and I think they [Liverpool] didn’t feel that this season with Arne Slot. For us it’s important but we have our last chance and we’re going to think about that in a positive way.’

Asked if PSG can overturn the one goal deficit, Enrique was adamant, saying: ‘Of course, we are going to do it.’

Slot had talked up PSG before the game so was not surprised by their quality as they bossed the match.

‘I said before the game that we would not dominate ball possession over here,’ said Slot.

‘The only thing I can blame my players for is that four, five, six times we tried to play through them and it was completely open and the last touch should be better. Maybe it was due to tiredness from defending so much. That is sometimes difficult after defending so much.

‘If you look at the underlying stats in the Champions League too it shows you they were number one, and they have already played Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Arsenal. To have the best stats after facing that quality tells you a lot.’

Ultimately Slot also agreed with Enrique, adding: ‘To go away with a win over here, it was a bit more than we deserved.’

The second leg at Anfield comes on Tuesday, with Liverpool hosting Southampton in the Premier League on Saturday before then.

PSG’s weekend action sees them go to Rennes in Ligue 1 before their trip to England.

MORE: Harry Kane beats Wayne Rooney Champions League tally and chases another Man Utd legend

MORE: Rio Ferdinand ‘amazed’ Liverpool star wasn’t sent off against PSG

MORE: Why Cody Gakpo misses the PSG vs Liverpool Champions League clash