‘The DNA needed changing’

Just over two years ago — my socials are ruthless with “Then and Now” reminders — I happened to be in Paris when the revolution started.

Paris Saint-Germain, then ruled by the Messi-Neymar-Mbappé triumvirate, had lost 3-1 at home to Lorient the previous week, and the mob was on the march. It first turned up at the Camp des Loges training complex, where it unveiled a protest banner, and 24 hours later it converged on the club’s administrative offices in Boulogne-Billancourt. The most aggrieved then moved on Neymar’s house in Bougival.

“End of an Era,” read the morning’s front page of L’Equipe. And so it was.

Within weeks, Messi and Neymar had left the club, and the likes of Marco Verratti, Sergio Ramos, Mauro Icardi and Leandro Paredes didn’t last much longer. Mbappé joined Real Madrid the following summer.

That was “Then.”

What happened next was unexpected, even brave. PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and his Qatari ownership group abandoned their superstar-centred strategy for a focus on young French footballers. They joined the revolution.

Twenty-year-old striker Bradley Barcola was brought in from Lyon to play alongside Ousmane Dembélé, who’d come from Barcelona two weeks prior. Warren Zaire-Emery, just 17, was promoted to the first-team squad on a permanent basis. Following Mbappé’s exit, teenaged winger Désiré Doué was acquired from Rennes.

By the time Georgia playmaker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia joined from Napoli to complete the puzzle in January, Les Parisiens were a totally different proposition.

This afternoon, they’ll contest a Champions League Final (2:00 p.m. CT, CBS & DAZN), the second in their history, and are playing with an exuberance those previous teams never quite managed, with a freedom revolutions tend to bring.

“The DNA needed changing,” PSG captain Marquinhos told Canal+ in the run-up to today’s showdown with Inter Milan in Munich. “A mentality needed to be put in place, and it wasn’t going to be done overnight.”

No, it took two years — still mightily impressive.

Later that May of 2023, I previewed another Champions League Final in these pages. Inter Milan were involved then, too, and their opponents were the treble-chasing English heavyweights Manchester City. They didn’t stand a chance.

“The only scenario in which Inter lift the European Cup,” I wrote,” is one that combines the meticulous execution of once-in-a-lifetime performances and, even more significantly, a whole lot of luck.”

They played well enough to not embarrass themselves, losing 1-0 in Istanbul. They’d also had their chances — 14 shots, five of which hit the target — but simply couldn’t convert them into goals. Still, they were close. And they knew it.

“There are defeats to be proud of, even if they sting,” analyzed Gazzetta dello Sport. “Like this one.”

For Inter, the time between “Then” and “Now” was spent doing the opposite of what PSG were up to. No revolutions here. The Nerazzurri got older on purpose, holding onto players who, given the chance, would put learned lessons into practice, and adding veterans to strengthen an already solid squad.

After the City defeat, Inter signed then-34-year-old Bayern Munich goalkeeper Yann Sommer and turned 35-year-old Lazio defender Francesco Acerbi’s loan into a transfer. Their big splash was a 30 million euro outlay for France centre-back Benjamin Pavard. A year later they won the Scudetto.

Last summer they snatched midfielder Piotr Zielinski, 30, from Napoli and striker Mehdi Taremi, 31, from Porto.

Of the 11 Inter players who started the 2023 Champions League Final, at least seven will line up to face PSG. They’ll have an average age of more than 30, and, according to striker Lautaro Martinez, as close to a perfectly-balanced squad as a club can build.

“Two years ago we played the Final against a strong team. We lost, but also matured a great deal since then,” he mused in his pre-match press conference. “Now we arrive in a perfect way, in every sense.”

“Then and Now.” As a Facebook memory, Inter Milan’s might start with a photo of Martinez, hands on his hips, his expression one of deep disappointment, tears welling at the corners of his eyes.

PSG’s would have a snapshot of balaclava-wearing ultras, crude banners running the width of the club’s offices, a smoke bomb going off in an image as loud as it is dramatic.

And the second picture? The “Now” they’ll insert next to “Then”?

It hasn’t been taken yet. Soon, though. It’s what they’re playing for today.

jerradpeters@gmail.com

@jerradpeters.bsky.social