Marquinhos acknowledges seven goals conceded and urgent adjustments needed before Champions League

Paris Saint-Germain face their first Champions League league phase match on Wednesday at Parc des Princes against Slovan Bratislava in worrying form: zero wins in the league and seven goals conceded in less than a month.

Since the season resumed, PSG’s results have accumulated disappointments. The Trophée des champions first slipped away from Luis Enrique’s side against RC Lens (1-0) in mid-August, before two draws conceded against Rennes and Lille (2-2, 2-2), then a home defeat to Monaco (1-2). The defending French champions have yet to find their rhythm.

At a press conference on the eve of the match, captain Marquinhos addressed the defensive malaise. “For a defender, it’s something that hurts when you concede goals, when we concede so many. We know why, we’ve talked about it, the coach has shown us videos. It’s collective work. We just need to be honest, sincere with ourselves, look at what we can do better. The coach tells us things, the truth,” said the Brazilian.

The centre-back nonetheless downplayed these difficulties by attributing them to early-season adjustments. “The coach showed us that we need to improve small things. These are details of the start of the season, we sometimes lose a bit of the feeling from recent years. We’ve started making adjustments and it depends a lot on us to regain that intensity and dynamism of recent years,” he added.

The message is unambiguous: PSG, double defending European champions and still driven by ambitions of a historic treble, must raise their level without delay. The visit of Slovan Bratislava represents an opportunity to return to winning ways and restart a season that is slow to get going.