Luis Enrique dreams of a Champions League three-peat, but warns: "We're not the clear favorites"

Two straight Champions League titles would already be a huge achievement for any club. A third in a row? That's a different matter entirely. And that's exactly what Luis Enrique addressed ahead of Wednesday's match against Manchester City, PSG's second European fixture of the season.

The coach from Asturias, speaking in an interview with the Parisian club's official channels, took a moment to look back before turning his attention to what lies ahead. And what lies ahead is nothing less than the chance to match the feat Zinedine Zidane pulled off with Real Madrid, winning three straight European titles between 2016 and 2018. A club that, before this PSG side came along, had never even won a single Champions League.

Luis Enrique was candid about how unexpected this whole run has been: "It's a pretty curious situation because, in the first year, nobody thought we could win the Champions League. In the second year, at the start of the season, nobody thought it either. Winning a second Champions League seemed impossible, and yet we ended up winning it," he explained.

"We're not the clear favorites"

Now the picture has changed completely. There's no more surprise or disbelief in Paris, there's expectation, and plenty of it. The coach noticed it out on the streets, in the mood around the city, but he still urged caution.

Today, if you ask any Parisian, whether they like soccer or not, they'll tell you we're going to win it. It's incredible! But you have to understand that just because everyone says it doesn't mean it's going to happen. We're in the fight, but it's going to be hard and we're not the clear favorites.Luis Enrique

The schedule, in fact, is giving his team no breathing room. After visiting City on Wednesday, PSG will host Barcelona next Tuesday, two matches the coach described as extra motivation for the entire squad: "When the time comes to play games like these, both the players and the coaches are more motivated than usual. We have a chance to match a Real Madrid record, and that's a special kind of motivation." On the two opponents awaiting them, he was direct: "They're two teams that also want to win the Champions League, that have already won it, and that are also favorites."

Four seasons, a personal record

There's another detail that hasn't gone unnoticed in Luis Enrique's career: he's now in his fourth season in charge of PSG, the longest stretch he's ever spent with a single club as a coach. And that, as he admitted, is no small thing for someone used to moving on every few years.

"It's the first time in my career as a coach that a relationship has lasted this long. It's not easy to stay more than two, three or four years in the same place. Being a coach is difficult because you're constantly on top of everything, preparing every important detail for the team," he said. He also spoke about that feeling of never fully being able to relax: "You win a game and, ten minutes later, you're already thinking about the next opponent, no matter their level. If it's a top level opponent, that's extra motivation, but there's always the fear of losing, the fear of not performing well."

Despite those constant demands, the Asturian made clear he has no intention of going anywhere: "What we've experienced in Paris from the very first days has been very special to me, and that's why we keep going. We keep going and we want to keep improving."