Capello slams ‘disastrous’ ex-Inter and Barça stars after PSG’s Champions League exit

LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA - SEPTEMBER 15: Fabio Capello of Italy managing the Red Team during a charity match for the Slovenian flood victims on September 15, 2023 in Ljubljana, Slovenia. In August 2023 major floods occurred in two-thirds of the Slovenian territory due to heavy rain. Deemed as the worst natural disaster of the country. (Photo by Jurij Kodrun/Getty Images)

Fabio Capello slams ‘disastrous’ Achraf Hakimi and Ousmane Dembele after PSG’s Champions League exit and believes Luis Enrique should have made substitutions earlier.

Gigio Donnarumma’s PSG were eliminated from the Champions League semifinals on Tuesday, losing 2-0 on aggregate to Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund.

Former Milan and Juventus coach Fabio Capello analysed the Ligue 1 giants’ performance during Sky Sport Italia’s post-match show and was highly critical of two PSG players, Hakimi and Dembele.

Capello slams ‘disastrous’ ex-Inter and Barça stars after PSG’s Champions League exit

“Mbappé didn’t do much and he had a chance to score, but usually, Hakimi on the right flank does something, same as Dembele. They were disastrous, they didn’t make a dangerous cross.”

Capello admitted PSG were “unlucky” as well, hitting the post six times across the two legs, but the ex-coach also felt Luis Enrique had a responsibility.

“You can’t play only in the final 20-25 minutes, the coach should have made substitutions earlier. When he put in faster players in the second part of the match, we saw a different PSG, but those who started played too simply.”

Capello, a former England and Russia national team coach, won the Champions League at Milan in 1993-94 and the UEFA Supercup in the following campaign.

He became Serie A champion nine times, five as a coach and four times as a footballer.

His last club was the Chinese side Jiangsu Suning, which he coached in 2017-18.