Luis Enrique did not try to dress it up. “In terms of preparation, this is not how it should be,” he said, after a summer in which a large chunk of his squad was delayed by World Cup duty. The staggered returns appear to have left PSG short of rhythm, short of cohesion and, in some cases, short of training time.
He was even more direct on squad condition, saying some players had “barely trained”. That matters in a one-off final, especially against an opponent likely to treat the occasion as a major statement opportunity.
For Aston Villa, this is the kind of match that can sharpen belief regardless of the final score. As Europa League winners, they have earned the right to test themselves against the side that now carries the biggest badge of all in Europe.
There is also a psychological edge to the occasion:
That does not make Villa favourites, but it does make them dangerous. If PSG are still searching for fluency, the English side have a real chance to turn this into an uncomfortable night.
Luis Enrique made clear he is thinking beyond Wednesday. “We are preparing for the season intelligently and we want to be in the best condition at the end of the season, rather than at the start of the season,” he said. That sounds sensible over a long campaign, but it leaves PSG walking into a final while still building.
That is what makes this Super Cup so interesting. Villa get an early reading of their level; PSG get a stress test before Lens in the French Super Cup on Sunday. The next storyline to watch is simple: can class carry PSG through before full sharpness arrives?