Soccer Football - France - Ligue 1 - Le Havre v Paris St Germain - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - December 3, 2023 Paris St Germain coach Luis Enrique reacts REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File photo
(Reuters) - Paris St Germain go into their final Champions League group game away to already qualified Borussia Dortmund knowing a win would see them top the group, and manager Luis Enrique is glad they have their destiny in their own hands.
Dortmund have 10 points, three more than PSG in second, but a win for the French side on Wednesday would see them top the group on the head-to-head tiebreaker, but anything less could see them out of the competition.
Newcastle United host AC Milan at the same time, and with both sides on five points, they can take advantage of a slip-up by PSG.
"Borussia have got through but their position is still up for grabs, the other two teams do not have their fate in their hands, while we do," Luis Enrique said on Tuesday.
"It's a complicated situation for everyone, but it is in our hands. It's not going to be easy of course. We have found it difficult in Champions League games, especially away from home. But that is not going to change our ideas or target."
In what was billed as the "Group of Death", the PSG manager has said all along that it would all come down to the final day, and so it has proved.
"It's down to logic because the differences are so small, it has been like that in every game," the Spaniard said.
"We could have won every game in this competition and we also could have lost all of them, so it wasn't very hard to know that it would come down to the last day."
There is a lot at stake for PSG, but the manager said it is easier to prepare for these type of games.
"These games are easy in some ways. You don't need to motivate the players. Sometimes you need to calm the players down when they are ahead of the final," he said.
"The players have been flying in training because they all want to be involved. In this type of game it's all about controlling that passion and ensuring that it doesn't become excessive."
The manager himself is not feeling the pressure.
"If you don't want pressure you shouldn't sign for big clubs as a player or as a coach. I have no problem with the attention, the pressure, and I am just here to enjoy the show."
(Reporting by Trevor Stynes; Editing by Toby Davis)
