It was a very offensive-minded and determined Luis Enrique who responded to journalists' criticisms that were presented at the news conference on Thursday, two days after Paris Saint-Germain's defeat in Lisbon, which he still considers unfair, and on the eve of traveling to Auxerre.

The Spanish coach defended his group tooth and nail, and notably his goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier. Here are his comments in full.

We can see similarities between the start of last season and PSG's current matches, where you are lacking a bit of efficiency. You were very optimistic last season. What makes you even more confident for the rest of the season regarding your team?

"Hello. It's very easy to answer that. You can see the number of goals we have scored this season. Four goals more than last year (at the same point, ed.). If that's not enough... It's an incredible reason. That's the reason. We have scored four more than last year. And last year, that wasn't bad. At the moment, we have scored four goals more goals than last year. We have four points fewer in Ligue 1 than last year, and we are not first because there is a team like Lens that has won its last 10 matches. Incredible. And they deserve to be first. But I think if we analyze this season that everyone has said is particular, I think we are in a very good moment with the points in Ligue 1 that we deserve, I think. And in the Champions League, with the worst group of all the teams, we are in a privileged position. Not bad, right?"

In the goalkeeper position, Lucas Chevalier conceded two goals from four shots on target against Sporting. At some point, could the fact that he is not decisive enough create doubt in the minds of his teammates?

"No. The first thing I would like to do every time we sign a player is tell him, 'Be careful, the first year at Paris Saint-Germain, you will be criticized, whatever you do.' It happened with Bradley (Barcola), with Desire Doue, with many players. It's normal. This year, we signed three players: Renato (Marin), Zabarnyi, and Lucas Chevalier. And you can appreciate that it's difficult to enter the normal dynamic. It's normal that the criticism is there. It's important to know that when you arrive at a team of this level, it's usual, and you have to know how to face it. And I repeat, I am very happy with what I have seen from the new players. Of course, they can improve, all three, but it's the normal dynamic at a team of this level."

(The journalist presses Luis Enrique on the possible doubts in the locker room regarding Chevalier.)

"Doubts... Nothing, nothing. There is no doubt. Everyone, all together, the club, our supporters, the team, the players, the sporting direction, the president, together, with our objective. It will be beautiful because, with what I have seen in the Champions League matches, I think we are in a very good moment. That's what I think."

Has Achraf Hakimi resumed training with you yesterday or today? Can he be part of the group tomorrow, or will you grant him rest or treatment?

"It will depend on the training session we will do (Thursday). I would like to speak with him because for me, it's important to know individually how he feels, what he thinks exactly. But he is back. He is in normal condition. He has a minor physical problem, but nothing important today. But tomorrow, maybe he will come, or he will not come. It will be my decision after speaking with him."

You told us just before the Champions League match that you were not sure it was good news to avoid the playoff round. Can you explain, because we wondered a lot about that statement? And if it's not an efficiency problem, if you continue to defend your goalkeeper, what needs to be adjusted in this period? Where can Paris Saint-Germain perhaps do a little better?

"You (the journalists), you try to find the solutions, but you don't find them."

"You (the journalists), all the time, you try to find the solutions, but you don't find them. Never. Ha, ha, ha. Because you don't have the information. It's normal. I can understand. That's why we try to respect your opinion, but I can't share it. You don't even have 50% of the information I have. When I see the opinions of many journalists on coaches in a match I watch on television, I think it's incredible. It's incredible. How courageous you are... You don't have the information, but you speak. That's professional football."

Why did you tell us that it might not necessarily be good news to avoid the playoffs?

"Because that's what I think. I'm not sure. It's not a random position. If I think about the minute load, the match load, it's important to be at 100%, but at the same time, during matches, there are many injuries. And if I value on one side the importance of matches and on the other the minute loads, and knowing that we won't have the four Coupe de France matches... It's a question I ask myself. I prefer to win the next match and finish in the top eight teams. But in the physical aspect and in what we need as a team, I have no doubt."

You played a good collective match in the Champions League, but we saw you annoyed with certain individuals, who sometimes made one too many touches. On the sideline, we sometimes saw you angry with players who had excesses of individualism. Did you find it necessary to rein in certain players or certain actions of your team a little?

"No, no. I'm sorry, but I get angry and annoyed during matches, but not with my players. I am very happy and very proud of what I saw, of the way we played, of the way we prepared the match, and of the way we started the match. And I have no problem with the players and no reproach to make to them as a team. Mistakes are part of football; it's normal, but the coach is also angry and preoccupied during matches, and I need to show my energy. But it's as usual, I think I'm not doing anything different from what I normally do."

Last season, we saw a change in mental confidence, especially after the match against Manchester City in the Champions League. Do you think it's important to have a moment like that, a trigger like that for the players this season?

"I don't know. It's very difficult to know if there will be a moment like that. For me, the difference between this year and last year is clear: last year, we didn't know we could win, and the players were not confident. Today, our players, individually and as a team, know that we can win. And the best thing is that the other teams know that we can come back (in a match) and win."

In recent months, we have seen PSG struggle sometimes in play and also in results. How do you explain it? Is it related to the opposition, which is tougher, or is there another reason in your eyes?

"There are many reasons. There are many reasons, and everyone can try to find the one they want. In my opinion, this year is particular. From the start of the season to today, Jan. 22, we have played only one match with the team that played the Champions League final. Only one match, and that was the first match of the season, with players out of form, not at 100%, I would say at 50%. And that has been this year. You have to value that. And if we talk about what our group is in the Champions League, if you look at the standings, you see that out of the 8 teams in our group, 6 of them can finish in the top 8. If I think about all that, I can say this season is extraordinary, even though you speak poorly of Chevalier, Zabarnyi, the Mister (referring to himself)."

We often tend in the collective unconscious to judge the quality of a match by the final score. You said something interesting on PSG TV a few minutes ago, namely that for you, the match at Sporting was your team's best away match since you arrived at the club. Can you explain why?

"Because I have the capacity to judge and analyze what I saw during the match, what we try to do. And Sporting is a real team. And you might think it's a Pot 4 team, but no. The Pot 4 teams are Tottenham and Newcastle (in reality, just Newcastle, with Bilbao being the other Pot 4 team faced by PSG). They are the Pot 4 teams, and they have 13 points each (actually, Tottenham has 14 points, and Newcastle has 13). They are our Pot 4 teams, and for me, when I see the way we dominated the match... They shot for the first time in the 19th minute and a second time following a foul in the last minute of the first half. When you see that at the professional level, it's incredible. I think it was an incredible match, and we were all angry after the match because it was so unfair. That's what I mean."

Like last year, you have a finishing problem at the moment at the same period. How do you make coexist on one side the staff who must have patience, keep their strategy, and on the other side the media, the supporters, the observers who only think about the result? How do you make the two coexist?

"It's normal, I get angry many times with you. Every time you lose a match, but you did many positive things, I get angry, and I mess up because I don't want to change the people who make their analysis through results. I have to understand that it's normal, it's like that, it works like that. I stay here (at PSG) because we won. If you start to lose regularly, you leave; those are the rules of the game. But it's incredible. After having played a match like that... I am used to receiving criticism. I am very comfortable with criticism because I don't care at all. I don't watch anything. But if I think about the players who arrived this year or last year, I tell myself that it will be positive in the future because when you suffer, you improve your character and your personality. But... that's it."

There is Ibrahim Mbaye, who returns freshly from the Africa Cup of Nations, who won that trophy and who accumulated a significant confidence boost. How did you find him, and are you happy with his return, you who saw a few days ago that you had very few players on your bench?

"These are complicated moments, but you have to know that it's the most normal thing this season. You have to accept it. Having Hakimi and Ibe (Mbaye) back, that is very positive. I am very happy for him because he is still 17. He has experience because he played a lot this season and last season too. I think in terms of maturity, the AFCON was important for him, and every time he played, I think he did well and showed he had the level. I am happy to have Ibe and Hakimi back, it's good news."

Tomorrow you face Auxerre, a team that is struggling, which is second-to-last in the standings. What type of match do you expect against this Auxerre team?

"They are always complicated matches, because they are in difficulty with their position in the standings. Normally, in this type of match, we face a team in a low block. And when you face a team in a low block, there is neither space nor time. That presents difficulties; you have to be lucid. We are used to this type of problem, but it's not for that reason that you will overcome it with ease. No, it will be complicated. You have to prepare for matches and be attentive, be precise, because there is no time, nor space, and it's even more difficult to score a goal."

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