New coach Thomas Tuchel dismissed concerns about dealing with Paris Saint-Germain’s “big personalities” yesterday, as he pledged to help Neymar bounce back after a difficult World Cup.
The 44-year-old German is taking on a star-studded squad including Neymar, the world’s most expensive player, with a mandate from PSG’s Qatari owners to land a coveted European title.
Ex-coach Unai Emery reportedly tangled with Neymar, while French World Cup-winner Kylian Mbappe is also rumoured to have a fractious relationship with the Brazilian star.
But Tuchel insisted: “In my experience the biggest players are the easiest characters because they want to compete and they want to win.”
“Of course we have very big personalities but I’m not worried about this,” he added at the International Champions Cup in Singapore, where PSG play Emery’s Arsenal today.
Tuchel, whose side also face Atletico Madrid at the Singapore National Stadium on Monday, highlighted that every player, no matter how famous, would have grown to love the sport from a similar, humble background.
“In the end I strictly believe that all of these guys were somewhere, sometime, some five, six-year-old guy with the ball under his arm, going round playing on the beach, around the houses, on the streets,” he said.
“We want to find this and bring this out so that they enjoy it. And also enjoy the hard work, and that they are aware of the signs that they give to everybody outside and inside the club.
“I am not here to teach them football and how to play, I am here to help them and organise a structure to show off their talent and keep them on track and hungry. I also need to show them the value of their behaviour and how it fits in to the work of the whole group.”
Neymar is yet to return to PSG after the World Cup, where Brazil were stunned by Belgium in the quarter-finals. The forward was also lampooned for his extravagant play-acting, which sparked the viral #NeymarChallenge on social media.
“Everybody in the club wants to help them to feel very well very soon so they can approach their next goals and not worry too long about what happened at the World Cup,” Tuchel said, when asked about Brazil’s defeat.
“He’s (Neymar) a big player, he knows how to handle victories, he knows how to handle losses... he’s a champion and we will help him to bounce back.”

Wenger respect
Tuchel had been linked in the British media with the Arsenal job but the German said it was never something he had considered and he was fully committed to the project of leading the French treble winners to further success.
“I made my decision to join Paris Saint-German before Arsene Wenger made his decision to leave Arsenal,” he added of the Frenchman, who ended his 22-year tenure in North London in May.
“He has my biggest respect as he built a club famously known for its style of football. He is an idol and role model for many coaches, especially for me. I never got in touch with Arsenal, so I don’t know if I was ever meant to be his successor...
“He was more than just a coach, he was Arsenal. He’s a gentleman and one of the biggest coaches in the world. I have the feeling he’s not finished yet.”