Desire Doue Compared to Jordan and Pele as PSG Star Rises

Désiré Doué is inexorably enjoying his best period at PSG, coming off two high-level performances against Manchester City and FC Barcelona. Unstoppable, like his team, he is being closely watched across Europe.

It's amusing that one of the most-talked-about players isn't even among the 30 finalists just days before the Ballon d'Or.

Désiré Doué has been on an impressive run since returning from the international break, which was itself very successful for the France national team. "If, for you, I am in my best period when I score, then that's the case right now." Doué preferred to smile when asked about his form after PSG vs. Barcelona (4-2). However, it's difficult not to talk about his best period.

In six days, the Frenchman opened the scoring at the Etihad against Manchester City (4-2), then did it again at the Parc against Barça (4-2) with two long-range strikes that have become almost his signature.

Two goals far from insignificant in the Champions League for a player destined to take on even more importance in Paris, with Kvaratskhelia out until the end of the season and Dembélé out for three weeks. In between, Doué also scored against Strasbourg (1-3). He can't stop.

Désiré Doué has become so unavoidable that L'Équipe devoted its first four pages to him in Saturday's edition. In Europe, the name "Doué" is on everyone's lips, too. Lothar Matthäus regrets that Bayern failed to sign him in 2024 and calls his progress "meteoric."

Hansi Flick, for his part, acknowledged after Barcelona's defeat that Doué had been "a big part of the problem," praising his dribbling, movement, and changes of direction.

The same enthusiasm elsewhere. Danny Taylor, a journalist for The Athletic, believes his recent European outings have propelled him "into the category of future superstars," while former Spain international Rafael Martin Vazquez, a brief player under Tapie at Marseille, already imagines him capable of competing with Lamine Yamal soon.

Last week, Doué was named in the Champions League Matchday 3 team of the week after his performance against Barça.

This new dimension of the former Rennes player shows up off the field, too. According to L'Équipe, advertisers are now flocking to Doué, even more than they did for Ousmane Dembélé.

The Parisian, however, does not wish to multiply contracts. After negotiating with several equipment manufacturers for a year and a half, he signed with Nike for several seasons and has signed no other major partnership to date.

His entourage favors long-term collaborations that match his image, without letting marketing interfere with the sporting side. But in the columns of the French daily, Lionel Maltesse, a sports marketing specialist, associates his name with "Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Rafael Nadal, Pelé, Johan Cruyff..." already.

The 11th most valuable player in the world according to Transfermarkt (€120 million), Doué said Tuesday night that he still had to "keep working because there are still many things to improve" in his game.