Quality to the fore, says Ancelotti

Paris Saint-Germain coach Carlo Ancelotti was pleased with the quality of Tuesday’s 4-0 win over Valenciennes.

A hat-trick from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and a solitary goal from Ezequiel Lavezzi wrapped up a second consecutive 4-0 victory for PSG, leaving them two points behind league leaders Lyon, who they face on Sunday.

“This result and the number of goals we score is not important, sometimes you play more difficult games and don’t score as many. What is important is the performance,” Ancelotti told L’Equipe.

“It is not important to think about winning every game 4-0. What is needed is to have the same attitude on the field (against Lyon on Sunday). We play at home, we’ve gained a lot of confidence but we’ll be careful.”

PSG appear to have gained momentum in recent weeks and Ancelotti was quick to praise the attitude of his players and their mental strength.

“After two games at home it was a good test for us to show the same mentality away in a difficult environment,” he added.

“Valenciennes have played well in their last few matches at home.

“We showed a good mentality, a good attitude. This is a good performance.

“The players started to play together and show character and they gave their skills to the team. I think that was the key.

“The credit goes to the players. They took their responsibilities. They changed their attitude on the field.”