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- 53 minutes ago
How to build a Champions League-winning team in one summer
Robin Bairner
- Updated: 6 Jun 2025 02:31 CDT
- 5 min read
Paris Saint-Germain’s victory in the 2025 Champions League final has finally brought Luis Enrique the recognition that he has long deserved as an elite coach.
Playing with a combination of panache and practicality, PSG romped to a record 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in European football’s showpiece event, brushing the Serie A runners-up aside just as easily as they did Reims a week earlier in the Coupe de France final.
It was a relentless performance from the Parc des Princes side, and even if questions over the club’s ownership and the issue of sportswashing linger, there is little doubt that they are worthy European champions in a footballing sense.
This has been achieved thanks also to the work of sporting director Luis Campos. The Portuguese is a not-so-secret weapon, having previously led Lille and Monaco to unlikely Ligue 1 title successes at the expense of the side from the capital.
Campos is a genius in the transfer market, and backed by the lavish funds of Qatar has excelled himself at PSG. In particular, the summer of 2024 was a masterpiece of a transfer window and should be remembered in hindsight as one of the greatest ever, particularly when the January signing of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is included.
The departure of Kylian Mbappe on a free transfer to Real Madrid proved less of a challenge than an opportunity for PSG, liberating others, including Luis Enrique, to shine in a collective sense.
Joao Neves
Signed from Benfica for €60m
Current Estimated Transfer Value (ETV): €70.4m
A gem of a signing that always looked a smart move for PSG but proved one of the deals of the summer. Not only did the Portuguese strike up a fine relationship with compatriot Vitinha, he has provided an unexpected impact offensively, chalking up three goals and eight assists in Ligue 1.
On top of this, Neves also filled in at right-back when Achraf Hakimi needed a break.
PSG actually signed him for below his ETV last summer, and his value has risen considerably since arriving in France.
Desire Doue
Signed from Rennes for €50m
Current Estimated Transfer Value (ETV): €76.5m
Signing Doue was a masterstroke. He had shown potential at Rennes but the step up to PSG looked a big one, particularly as he had an ETV of little over €20m just a year ago.
Doue’s valuation has jumped nearly four times, which is a reflection of a remarkable campaign in which he has shown himself to be a decisive player at the highest level. Not only is he a thrilling and unpredictable player to watch – embodying the freewheeling spirit of Luis Enrique’s side – he has end product as he showed by scoring twice and assisting once against Inter.
William Pacho
Signed from Eintracht Frankfurt for €40m
Current Estimated Transfer Value (ETV): €50.3m
Pacho has proven another runaway success, providing the type of solidarity in the heart of the PSG defence that they have too regularly missed over the years.
He arrived in an unheralded fashion as PSG seemed to pay over the odds for him yet he has proven to be worth every cent, with his ETV doubling over the course of 12 months.
Pacho looks like a player who will be a mainstay of the rearguard for years to come.
Matvey Safonov
Signed from Krasnodar for €20m
Current Estimated Transfer Value (ETV): €22.9m
Brought in to provide genuine competition to Gianluigi Donnarumma, the Russian goalkeeper has done his job and more. The Italian may have shone in the Champions League at key moments, but there were some shaky moments for him during the early part of the campaign during which Safonov was able to provide him with precious relief.
Indeed, the ex-Krasnodar man actually finished with better statistics that Donnarumma in terms of clean sheet percentage, save percentage and xGOT, which measures the quality of shot a goalkeeper stops.
So Luis Campos dropped an all-time performance in the transfer market to unlock the potential of Luis Enrique and PSG, and the likelihood is that he will have to do so again if the Parisian club are going to defend their Champions League title.
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