Ousmane Dembélé is not in PSG‘s starting lineup for the UEFA Super Cup final against Aston Villa, with Maghnes Akliouche taking his place in the front three alongside Désiré Doué and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
The reasoning ties back to his fitness. Dembélé returned late to training after an extended run with France at the World Cup, which ended in a fourth-place finish, and PSG have been cautious about rushing him back into a starting role.
The club reportedly built out a specialized physical and technical program specifically for players coming back from international duty on staggered schedules, and Dembélé’s recovery simply hasn’t lined up with the rest of the group in time for this match.
That’s not for a lack of desire on his part. Reports indicate Dembélé is determined to feature in the final and has been pushing to be involved, even moving up his return to training to try to be ready in time. Ultimately, though, the decision was left in Luis Enrique’s hands, and the Spanish coach opted for caution over risk.
PSG’s other returning internationals in similar limbo
Dembélé isn’t alone in that situation. PSG have several returning internationals — including Bradley Barcola, Fabián Ruiz and Lucas Hernández — dealing with similar staggered reintegration timelines, forcing Luis Enrique to balance fielding his strongest possible XI against the risk of pushing tired bodies too soon at the very start of the season.
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Barcola’s case comes with an added layer, having been ill for a few days and unable to complete all of his training sessions, all while managing transfer speculation linking him with a move to Liverpool.
Fabián Ruiz and Lucas Hernández, meanwhile, only rejoined the squad in training two days before the match, leaving Luis Enrique with limited time to assess whether either is ready to feature.
