PSG situation on the verge of exploding

The furious argument that came to light between Marquinhos, Neymar and Luis Campos after the defeat by Monaco was the final straw for a PSG side that is showing signs of being on the brink. Without the expected results and with the shadow of Bayern looming over them, the Parisians are going through their worst moment since the arrival of Qatar as owners.

In fact, the World Cup held on Qatari soil, which began as one of the great assets of Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Co's project when they took the reins of the club, has ended up being the trigger for everything to fall apart. The fatigue of fulfilled aspirations, in some cases, and failures, in many others, has left a team that has done nothing but accumulate 'fiascos' since. Knocked out of the French Cup and having taken only 13 out of 24 points in the league, without even getting into the poor image they have been showing on the pitch, the team is running out of arguments.

And all this comes at the worst possible time. PSG spends what it spends and continues with their ambitious project for one big reason above all others. To win the long-awaited Champions League, which came so close in 2020 and which has eluded them every year. The same Bayern Munich that snatched the trophy away from them in the year of Covid, now appears in the Parisians' path. And if it wasn't already complicated enough, the crossroads comes with a broken team and an Mbappe on the edge.

The Frenchman has forced his comeback from injury to be at the Parc des Princes tonight and will certainly play a few minutes, given the vital importance of the match for the project he opted for last summer when he ended up rejecting Real Madrid to remain until 2025 in Paris. A decision that was largely based on winning the Champions League and being the hero of his country's biggest club.

Another of the bombshells is about to explode in the club's structure is that of Luis Campos. The sporting director has reached the end of his tether after his angry argument with the players following the defeat at the Stade Luis II. The team's image was undignified and Neymar's constant displays of disapproval on the pitch stretched the patience of a Campos who is struggling to break with the old traditions of a team dominated by the dressing room.

The team's numbers are unacceptable, despite remaining top of the league, which is more than a must in a competition like France's, defeats to Lens, Rennes and Monaco in the league and the one to Marseille in the cup have exhausted the patience of the board. Only the incomprehensible collapse of Lens in the fight for the championship, losing 10 of their last 12 available points, has saved them from an even more critical situation.

And of all those who have been singled out in this situation, the first to light is Neymar. It's not new in Paris but the Brazilian's is the most damaged name and the most talked about to end up being the scapegoat. It is reported in France that they have put him on the exit ramp and are looking for a way to end to his spell at the club next summer.

The continuity of Messi and Mbappé are priorities for the Parisians, who are beginning to see that they must start to do without some of their big stars. Although Neymar's is surely the most complicated operation to carry out. His performance on the pitch is almost unquestionable this season, but his contract runs until 2027 and his astronomical salary, which is close to 36 million a year, closes the door to any exit.

Meanwhile, Messi continues without renewing his contract and what seemed to be a confirmed fact and only pending a simple signature is becoming a stalemate that is only making the club's atmosphere even more tense. They are also working with the situation of Kylian Mbappe, who despite having renewed just a few months ago, is the subject of rumours swirling around about possible clauses and requests to leave the club.

An accumulation of uncertainties and situations burning ever hotter which the Bayern Munich barometer will either end up exploding, if the team is not able to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League, or will extinguish a large part of them if PSG ends up eliminating the Bavarians and momentarily halts the sporting and institutional doubts, which only winning the Champions League will be able to make disappear.