Riolo accuses Luis Enrique of 'pettiness' after betting on Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 title

Journalist Daniel Riolo strongly criticized Luis Enrique, Paris Saint-Germain’s head coach, after the Spaniard publicly bet on his team winning the Ligue 1 title, despite a poor start to the season in the French league.

Paris Saint-Germain has reason for concern: after losing the Trophée de la Ligue to Lens (0-1), the Parisian club has failed to record a single victory in the championship after three matches, drawing with Rennes (2-2) and Lille (2-2) before losing at home to Monaco (1-2). Rather than showing frustration, Luis Enrique dismissed these results after the defeat to Monaco: “The ball is sometimes illogical. For me, it’s clear that we deserve to win. The real chance indicators are in our favor.” The Spaniard then issued a challenge: “If you want to bet on who will be champion at the end of the season, we can bet.”

These comments sparked Riolo’s anger. In his view, speaking this way with a budget estimated at €800 million is “a deep insult to the rest of football fans in France” and to anyone who cares about French football. The journalist pointed to the structural imbalance that makes the comparison absurd: “You can fail on signings with €250 million, no problem. Zabarny could be a bicycle pump, Koulibaly, Gonçalo Ramos, Safonov… you can have four goalkeepers in the squad and do whatever you want.”

Riolo also challenged Luis Enrique’s immunity, which his previous successes in the UEFA Champions League provide him, calling on him to measure his words: “Go coach Auxerre! You’re so strong that it’s clear you’ll achieve something with Auxerre. The players will run, playing principles will show, but you won’t get the same results, man!” before concluding with a decisive statement: “Saying ‘we’ll bet’ when you have an €800 million budget, that’s petty!”

Luis Enrique remains confident and declares his desire to “fix the situation as quickly as possible,” with his team trailing Monaco, who lead the standings, by seven points.