Paris Saint-Germain is experiencing a media and sporting storm following the painful episode that occurred on September 6 in Kyiv. That day, the French team won 2-0 against Ukraine in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. But behind this victory for the Blues, another, much darker story broke: Ousmane Dembélé, PSG’s star winger, left the field with a serious hamstring injury. This news has sparked a spat between the Parisian club’s management and coach Didier Deschamps.
Anger rose in the corridors of the Parc des Princes in the first hours following the match. According to several sources, PSG officials had already informed the French team’s medical staff that Dembélé had been suffering from muscle discomfort since the Ligue 1 clash against Toulouse. Despite this warning, Deschamps decided to field the former Barça player, a decision the club now considers irresponsible and dangerous. The result: six weeks of unavailability, confirmed by PSG’s official statement. A blow for Luis Enrique, who was counting on Dembélé’s speed and creativity in the upcoming crucial matches, particularly in the Champions League.
The reaction from Parisian management was swift. In the media, internal voices denounced the player’s “unnecessary endangerment,” accusing Deschamps of prioritizing the short-term nature of the national team over the club’s interests. Some did not hesitate to describe the coach’s decision as “scandalous,” fearing that this absence would compromise the balance of the Parisian squad. With Kylian Mbappé already the center of attention and Randal Kolo Muani still searching for consistency, losing Dembélé at a crucial stage of the season is seen as a real disaster.
Didier Deschamps, true to his temper, quickly spoke out to calm the storm. “Ousmane was fit, otherwise I wouldn’t have played him. His injury has nothing to do with his previous pain,” he explained to reporters. The coach emphasized the positive medical opinion given before the match, while reminding everyone that “injuries are part of football” and that no coach is completely immune to this kind of setback. But these words were not enough to calm the Parisian resentment.
Because beyond Dembélé’s individual case, this affair rekindles a long-standing simmering conflict: the ongoing tension between clubs and national teams over player management. PSG, which invests astronomical sums to recruit and pay its stars, believes that the federations’ responsibility is too light when it comes to protecting the health of footballers. The Dembélé affair cruelly recalls other precedents, such as Neymar’s injury during his time with the Brazilian national team, which had already poisoned the relationship between PSG and FIFA.
Fans, for their part, are oscillating between indignation and concern. On social media, many accuse Deschamps of “sacrificing” PSG, while others point out that Dembélé, known for his frailty, has long been struggling with a series of recurring injuries that are complicating his career. Some even joke about a “curse” that systematically strikes PSG attackers when they leave for international duty.
For Luis Enrique and his staff, the priority now is to rebuild a game plan without Dembélé. But the winger’s injury could have a snowball effect: tactical reorganization, increased pressure on Mbappé, and the risk of exhaustion for the other attacking players. Just weeks before an anticipated European clash in the Champions League, the absence of a key forward poses a real threat to Paris’s ambitions.
A simple choice by Didier Deschamps, deemed trivial at the time, has thus transformed into an open crisis between Paris and the French Football Federation. And if this rift were to worsen, it could not only weigh on PSG’s season, but also tarnish the image of the French team as the World Cup approaches. One thing is certain: the Dembélé affair is only just beginning, and it risks haunting the already fragile relationship between club and national team for a long time to come.
