Luis Enrique Reveals PSG’s Ambition to Match Real Madrid’s Champions League Record

Luis Enrique has told Paris Saint-Germain to chase a rare treble of their own, saying he wants the reigning European champions to win a third straight Champions League and match what Real Madrid have done.

PSG have won the competition twice in a row under the 56-year-old Spaniard. Only Real have managed three in a row, and they completed it by beating Liverpool in the 2018 final. Enrique feels his side can join them, and he says that goal is driving the squad this season.

"We've won it [Champions League] twice in a row, but that's no reason to stop. We're built to play in the Champions League. We have an extra incentive: to try and achieve something that only Real Madrid has managed to do so far. It's a special goal," he told the club's official website.

The defence of their title began last month with a 6-1 thrashing of Slovan Bratislava. Now the tests get tougher. PSG travel to Manchester City on Wednesday, then host Barcelona in Paris on 20 October. Barcelona is Enrique's old club, and he led them to Champions League glory in 2015. The two games will show a lot about where the holders stand.

Enrique is not treating PSG as the clear favourites, though. "These [Man City and Barcelona] are two teams that love winning the Champions League, who have already won it and who are among the favourites. There are six, seven or eight teams capable of winning this Champions League. We're one of them, but it'll be tough and we're not the clear favourites," he said.

Since he took charge at the Parc des Princes in July 2023, Enrique has won 13 major trophies with the club. That includes the two European crowns and three Ligue 1 titles. He has also signed a new three-year deal that keeps him in the French capital until 2030.

He says winning the Champions League was always the main aim. "That was our primary objective when we arrived here: to make history. Everyone knew the club had already won major trophies, but there was no trophy more important to us than the Champions League. For me, as a manager, just as for the players, the desire to win constantly is an essential characteristic of the very highest level."

The new contract has also raised the stakes for him. "I've extended my contract and now I'm under even more pressure to show that I'm ready to carry on and that I still want to win many more trophies for Paris Saint-Germain. It's always the same objective: to win and keep on winning," he said.