Despite a disappointing first half of the season and limited playing time in the Champions League, Ilya Zabarnyi has delivered strong performances in Ligue 1 in recent weeks and will have a second season at PSG, unlike others.

Recruited last Aug. 12 for €63 million plus 3 in bonuses, Ilya Zabarnyi experienced complicated first months at PSG. The Ukrainian central defender arrived to prepare for the post-Marquinhos era, but has generally disappointed and is still far from having dislodged the Brazilian from Luis Enrique's mind in big matches.

One statistic reflects this reality well: Zabarnyi has the 3rd-highest playing time at PSG in Ligue 1, but only the 17th in the Champions League, a competition in which he was sent off against Leverkusen before being suspended against Bayern. He then played only 56 minutes in the Champions League since his return from suspension, and, for example, did not play a single second against Monaco in the playoffs.

However, Zabarnyi remains in his coach's plans, unlike Lucas Chevalier, for example, who has completely disappeared from circulation for 8 matches since Matvey Safonov's return from injury. The Ukrainian has played the last 3 PSG matches in full in Ligue 1 and is coming off two strong performances against Metz and Le Havre last Saturday.

"I like it when you speak well of Zabarnyi," Luis Enrique rejoiced last weekend. "He played a very good match in the last one he played. Today, for me, he was the best PSG player on the pitch. It's important to find players again. And in this moment, for me, as a coach, it's important to see that there are players who love the game and want to start. It's important for growing as a team."

Before these two strong performances against bottom-of-the-table opponents, Zabarnyi had sunk at Rennes, like the rest of his team, after a rather good first half. Just before, during the clashes against Strasbourg and Marseille, he hadn't played a single second, but had already delivered a good match at Auxerre last Jan. 23.

Having appeared 27 times this season, out of 39 matches played by PSG, Zabarnyi is therefore completely in the register of a first adaptation season. He still has a long way to go to establish himself in the starting eleven in the matches that really count, but the former Bournemouth player is on the right track.

According to L'Equipe, Zabarnyi and his entourage are not disappointed with his playing time, which ranks 7th in the squad across all competitions, ahead of that of Marquinhos and Achraf Hakimi, for example. Discreet in the locker room, the 23-year-old Ukrainian is taking French lessons and seems happy with his partner in his new Parisian life (the couple lives in Neuilly-sur-Seine).

Everything therefore seems in place for Zabarnyi to have a second season at PSG, the season of affirmation, as L'Equipe writes this Wednesday. Lucas Chevalier, recruited for nearly €40 million last summer, will he be able to say the same? Will he even want to? Not certain.

In the recent past, PSG did not hesitate to part ways with Manuel Ugarte after a single season at the club. The Uruguayan defensive midfielder had been recruited in the summer of 2023 for nearly €60 million as well, but had completely exploded in flight after a strong start, and PSG managed to resell him as early as the summer of 2024 to Manchester United for €50 million plus 10 million in bonuses. A fate that Zabarnyi should not experience.

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