When most managers learn they’ll be facing one of their own players in the Champions League, nerves kick in — but not Luis Enrique. Instead, the Paris Saint-Germain coach is all smiles ahead of their quarter-final clash with Aston Villa, where PSG loanee Marco Asensio is expected to feature.
“I’m delighted he can play,” Enrique said on the eve of Wednesday’s first leg at the Parc des Princes. “He needed more game time, and Villa gave him that opportunity. It’s great to see him thriving.”
Asensio, 29, struggled for minutes in Paris earlier this season, prompting a late January loan move to Aston Villa. Since landing in Birmingham, the Spanish international has caught fire — netting 8 goals in just 11 games, including a crucial hat trick across both legs of Villa’s last-16 triumph over Club Brugge.
But don’t expect any bad blood. Enrique and Asensio go way back, having worked together with Spain’s national team at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“He came to the World Cup with me and played a key role. He’s a top-class player — and always has been,” Enrique added.
As PSG prepare for a high-stakes night in the French capital, they’ll do so without their captain Marquinhos, who is suspended for the first leg. But Enrique is also relishing another familiar reunion — this time in the dugout with fellow Spaniard Unai Emery, now leading a red-hot Aston Villa side.
“Unai’s teams always improve. He’s full of energy and has a trophy-laden career. It’ll be great to see him again,” Enrique said, reflecting on what will be his 100th match in charge of PSG.
With PSG already crowned Ligue 1 champions and riding the momentum of knocking out Liverpool in a penalty thriller, all eyes now turn to Tuesday, April 15, when the second leg kicks off in England — and anything can happen.
