Atletico to keep working hard

The Paris Saint-Germain squad is being slowly being bolstered by its returning World Cup stars squad is working hard in Singapore. New Rouge et Bleu coach Thomas Tuchel continues to prepare for the first competitive match of the season, the Trophée des Champions against Monaco, this Saturday in Shenzhen.

But before then, there’s the Atletico de Madrid match to bring the curtain down on the capital club’s participation in the ICC. Penalty shootout winners over Arsenal in their first match, Los Colchoneros will provide another stern test. Paris can count on Moussa Diaby and Yacine Adli, semi-finalists in the recent Euro U19 with Les Bleuets, and ready to play. Di Maria and Thiago Silva joined the squad in the last few days and maybe considered.

Despite the heavy loss to Arsenal, last time out, Gigi Buffon highlighted the good atmosphere within the camp in the pre-match press conference: “The results are not important at the moment. I think what counts for the moment is to keep working hard and work on the squad’s cohesion. And from that point of view, everything is going perfectly. I feel great with my new teammates and the coaching staff. We are working hard to be ready for the start of the season.”

Thomas Tuchel reiterated the need to be patient as they worked their way back to top form.  “Patience is the biggest challenge for me at the moment… I’m pretty impatient when we talk about sport. But I don’t want to put too much pressure on players who aren’t ready yet. It takes time to get them ready. We, the coaching staff, also have to adapt to ensure the players work back to form in the best possible conditions. But I know the players also adapt very quickly. We can’t wait to be in top form, but it will take as long as it takes.”

Les Rouge et Bleu can also count on their growing popularity in the region and the special Paris Saint-Germain fan zone will be a central point for fans with Germain the lynx and the presentation of the four trophies the club won last season.