Luis Enrique hails PSG difference-maker Doue for silencing critics

Luis Enrique hailed Desire Doue for his ability to silence the critics after he inspired Paris Saint-Germain to victory against Monaco in the Champions League.

Doue was named on the bench for the first leg of PSG’s all-Ligue 1 play-off tie on Tuesday, having gone nine games without a goal in all competitions.

But after Folarin Balogun’s brace put Monaco 2-0 up and Vitinha saw a penalty saved by Philipp Kohn, Doue was required earlier than expected due to an injury to Ousmane Dembele.

His impact off the bench was immediate, though, as he scored one minute and 59 seconds after coming on – the fastest Champions League goal by a substitute this season.

Doue then saw a shot parried by Kohn into the path of Achraf Hakimi, who scored PSG’s equaliser, and after Monaco had Aleksandr Golovin sent off, he sealed a 3-2 win for the visitors in the 67th minute.

Doue became just the second player to score two or more goals as a substitute for PSG in a Champions League game, after Kylian Mbappe’s hat-trick off the bench against Club Brugge in October 2019.

“Everyone was killing him in the last few weeks. He’s an incredible player, he’s different,” Luis Enrique told Canal+ afterwards.

“We have a lot of players of this level, who are very young but with a lot of ambition. I’m very happy for him because he deserved this performance. He was very important.”

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Ballon d’Or holder Dembele had been an injury doubt ahead of the game, and he only lasted 27 minutes before hobbling off in the latest setback to befall him this season.

But Luis Enrique is confident his team can cope without the forward, saying: “It’s normal, there is pressure on all the players. We are a very young team.

“We have a bit more experience, but this year, we have the pressure to win. We like this pressure. We showed that we are capable.”

This was just the second time PSG have won a Champions League game when trailing by at least two goals, in 27 attempts.

They previously beat Manchester City 4-2 en route to winning their first European crown last season, and their head coach was delighted to navigate a tricky situation.

“It was a special match, because the first action [for Monaco] ended in a goal,” he said. “The second time they overcame our pressure, they scored their second.

“In this kind of moment, it’s easy to lose confidence individually and collectively, but we got over that moment. The team was sensational in terms of their mentality.”