Sporting-PSG (2-1): Désiré Doué did not show his best face

It’s a scene that allowed him to reveal himself to the whole of Europe last season, to become a legend and forge his reputation as a generational crack. Theater of its advent in the spring of 2025, the Champions League was waiting, this Tuesday evening, for Désiré Doué to find his bright clothes in order to launch a new continental epic which, until now, had not fundamentally started. She will wait a little longer because her performance this Tuesday evening in Lisbon (2-1) has still not allowed her to give a real boost to this new campaign.

With only 73 minutes played and two appearances – a start in Leverkusen (with a double scored) and a start in Bilbao – it is an understatement to say that the European champion, not spared from injuries, did not meet the expectations aroused by his golden career. On the Sporting Portugal pitch, Désiré Doué was therefore a little more scrutinized than some of his partners, but he was perhaps also a little more disappointed than others in terms of the content produced.

Installed in the right corridor which had succeeded so well, the former Rennais had nevertheless given the sensation of rediscovering good vibrations and of being a key player in this meeting. Invigorating and dynamic, it was he who was at the origin of the Parisians’ first offensive initiated after a long sequence of possession. After having mystified the unfortunate Araujo, he intelligently shifted to Zaire-Emery, finally countered by the opposing defenders (4th).

A lack of simplicity in the game

Taking advantage of the stifling pressing carried out by his partners, he was still at work four minutes later and pulled away to serve Mayulu at the right time, whose left shot finally finished wide. While he had a frankly disappointing first period against Lille on Friday, before producing a much more consistent second act, Doué seemed to be launching on the same bases, with sharper runs and judicious choices.

The initial good impression finally faded little by little, with the French international giving the impression of forcing his choices a little too much or of complicating his task. We know that Désiré Doué’s room for maneuver lies there, in these decisions which could be simpler (10 balls lost at the break). But the European champion remains, above all, this creative player, this thrilling player capable of unlocking a match with a dribble or a leg pass, like his superb ball release from his part of the field leading to Kvaratskhelia’s goal (79th).

A little earlier, number 14 had also tried to make the difference thanks to an inspiration of which he has the secret (38th), but, like his teammates, he was profoundly lacking in finishing success. The attacker, overall, displayed a deficit of accuracy in certain gestures, like his off-target shot with his left foot (68th) and also increased the number of unnecessary touches of the ball or the small gestures of annoyance which reflect the imperfect nature of his performance. Europe will still have to wait before seeing the best version of Désiré Doué again.