Latest news with #LuisCampos
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
‘He just doesn't give a f**k' – how Luis Enrique's heartache is driving his revolution in Paris
Luis Enrique is getting exasperated but, as usual, there's a wicked smile underneath. It is his first weeks at Paris Saint-Germain, in autumn 2023, and he is trying to introduce the squad to a new approach. 'Chaos,' he shakes his head as yet another star fumbles an instruction. 'At the moment, this is a bit shocking.' Luis Enrique's grand mission statement was to finally impose a modern ideology on PSG, the game-leading 'positional play' of Barcelona. The problem is not just that this jars with 'the French school', to quote sporting director Luis Campos. It is that it jars with everything that the PSG has been for over a decade.
The Independent
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Inspired by tragedy, how Luis Enrique led fearless PSG to the Champions League final
Luis Enrique is getting exasperated but, as usual, there's a wicked smile underneath. It is his first weeks at Paris Saint-Germain, in autumn 2023, and he is trying to introduce the squad to a new approach. 'Chaos,' he shakes his head as yet another star fumbles an instruction. 'At the moment, this is a bit shocking.' Luis Enrique's grand mission statement was to finally impose a modern ideology on PSG, the game-leading 'positional play' of Barcelona. The problem is not just that this jars with 'the French school', to quote PSG's sporting director Luis Campos. It is that it jars with everything that the PSG has been for over a decade. Throughout all of this, Campos was watching absurd training sessions and actually laughing. He could laugh, however, because he could see what was really happening. 'If we don't win this year, I'm sure we'll win next year,' Campos proclaimed. On Saturday in Munich, Campos could be proved correct. Many would celebrate a PSG victory over Inter Milan, despite the French club's controversial Qatari state ownership. That support is largely down to the manager. In truth, it's also about the manager. It is as if many questions about PSG as a sportswashing project have faded next to a public will for Luis Enrique to do this. Much of that is down to one moment, that is now poignantly shared when the manager enjoys some glory. Luis Enrique is sitting at PSG's training ground, and discussing his 'whirlwind, marvellous' young daughter, Xana. In 2019, she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. She sadly passed away a few months later, at the age of nine. Given that he is a man who is so spiky about everything in football, it would be easy to understand Luis Enrique being angry at the sheer injustice of this. That isn't the case. What is so touching about the scene is that he only looks to the good. 'My daughter came to live with us for nine wonderful years. We have a thousand memories of her. You may ask whether I consider myself fortunate or unfortunate. I consider myself to have been fortunate. Very fortunate.' One of those memories was from exactly 10 years, and another Champions League final in Germany, as Luis Enrique won his only medal so far with Barcelona in Berlin's Olympiastadion. 'I have an amazing photo of her, planting a Barcelona flag into the turf,' he said in January. 'I want to be able to do the same with a PSG flag. My daughter won't be there in the physical sense but she will be there spiritually, and that's very important to me.' It suddenly becomes very difficult to begrudge his team victory. This emotional story gained renewed prominence due to the documentary You Have No F****** Idea, from which that scene comes. There are a few layers to the title, given that it can refer to what Luis Enrique says to people (especially media), what he works through, what he has had to live through and – most importantly – his personality. It's not all manic energy, as Campos chuckles. You can see why people love Luis Enrique, even as he drives them mad. The PSG players listen to him now because, in the words of one insider, 'he just doesn't give a f***'. He has no time for the internal star politics of PSG, or the various burdens the squad had felt, such as the fact that Neymar and Kylian Mbappe still hadn't won the Champions League. Luis Enrique cares not for any of that. A young team consequently plays without fear. The abrasiveness that has defined Luis Enrique's career is well told, from the courage to leave Real Madrid for Barcelona as a player, to the willingness to face down Lionel Messi as a coach. What stands out when you see Luis Enrique up close is the emotional honesty that could be heard as he spoke about Xana. He may be manic, but he's genuine. With one story from his brief time at Roma, Luis Enrique laughed when he saw their breakfast options for the first time: cream-filled cornettos and indulgent cappuccinos. They were gone the next morning. 'The wedding party is over!' When told of one player who hid a smoking habit, Luis Enrique went to him. 'You won't want a non-smoking room then?' Criticism of a system with four forwards in the 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United then received a customary response. 'The press don't like four forwards because they don't know how to put them in their little pictures. 'There are only three places, how do we arrange them? How do we arrange them?!' Arrange them how they come out of your balls!' There's even laughter as he remembered what a 'nuisance' a young Pep Guardiola was, giving him and Luis Figo tactical instructions from the line as a sub. And yet Luis Enrique freely talks about how he then followed the Catalan into coaching, and followed his famous ideology. The pure love for the game is there. He may bark at Ousmane Dembele and roll his eyes at how 's***' his set-pieces are but, when the winger suddenly beats a right-back, Luis Enrique enthuses: 'Marvellous, only Ous can do that for you.' Luis Enrique is now as sophisticated a coach as you can get, but there's again that humanity. He spends hours poring over analysis, loves data and believes the 'future of football' is a coach monitoring pressing from high in the stands… except, he'd hate it. He wouldn't be able to shout at a player in front of him getting too comfortable in a one-on-one. This was why Campos and PSG had that belief. They could see how Luis Enrique worked, and what needed to be done with this young team. One key moment did help. Throughout 2023-24, Luis Enrique constantly talked – with some edge – about how the team always had to work for Mbappe. You can sense the frustration, from a coach who believes in an uncompromising pressing game. 'Kylian never defends… so we have adapted the system so that he runs as little as possible.' And yet, in the dressing room before one game, Luis Enrique exploded and told Mbappe he absolutely had to press the right centre-half. 'This is a match!' he shouted. 'A little bit more normality does no harm,' Luis Enrique said at one point. So, the manager constantly joked at the expense of Mbappe's megastar status. 'Mr Mbappe, right this way!' What does Mbappe think now? He could join Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Maxwell as the only players to join the reigning European champions, only to see their previous club immediately win the trophy. It is not luck. Mbappe's departure did more than lighten the mood at PSG. It specifically aided Luis Enrique's ideology. The entire team now presses. There was a conspicuous comment in the build-up to this final. 'If you analyse our defensive improvements, it is about the way our attackers defend. They do an exceptional job. You can see how many ball recoveries they have. This is one of the concepts which is hardest to instil because attackers have to change their mindset.' He has changed the thinking about the club. It's really about one man. He'll mostly be thinking about one little girl.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
PSG join race to sign Franco Mastantuono
Paris Saint-Germain are preparing for one of the most important matches in the club's history, with Luis Enrique's side set to come up against Inter Milan in the final of the UEFA Champions League. However, behind the scenes, Luís Campos is now preparing for the future. Campos' future at the club was clarified last week. The Portuguese sporting director signed a long-term extension at PSG, bringing an end to the uncertainty that had clouded his future for several months. Prior to the extension, Campos had already been working on the upcoming window. Advertisement As per Florian Plettenberg, Franco Mastantuono (17) is a target for Les Parisiens. Campos is a big fan of the player, leading to PSG joining a host of European clubs in showing an interest in the midfielder. Plettenberg understands that talks between Mastantuono have already taken place. His current contract with River Plate runs until the summer of 2026. GFFN | Luke Entwistle
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
🔎 Attention at River, another European giant wants Mastantuono
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here. The 17-year-old midfielder is "a priority" for Luis Campos, sporting director of Paris Saint-Germain, according to journalist Florian Mastantuono is one of the great gems of South American football and has started to attract interest from the most important clubs in Europe. At just 17 years old, the River Plate midfielder appears to be a top target for several of the best teams in the world. According to Florian Plettenberg, a Sky Sports journalist who specializes in transfers, Paris Saint-Germain has already started talks to sign Mastantuono, who is under contract with River until December 2026. "PSG has entered the race for the super talented Franco Mastantuono. Talks have already begun," Plettenberg wrote on his 'X' account. 🚨🔵🔴 EXCL | Paris Saint-Germain have entered the race for super talent Franco #Mastantuono!He's on #PSG's shortlist, and talks have already taken place. Luis Campos is a big admirer of 17-year-old midfielder is under contract at River Plate until 2026.@SkySportDE… — Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) May 21, 2025 Luis Campos, sporting director of the Parisian club, who renewed his contract with the institution until 2030, is described as a "big admirer" of the River youngster, who has scored seven goals in 18 matches this season. Mastantuono has become River's top star. He made his debut under Martín Demichelis and has now established himself as one of the key players under Marcelo Gallardo. It is likely that Lionel Scaloni will soon call him up to Argentina's senior national team. There are reports that Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid, and Manchester United have him on their radar, although none seem as intent on moving quickly as PSG to secure the signing. River Plate faces Universitario of Peru next Tuesday in the final match of the CONMEBOL Libertadores group stage and will play a fixture against San Martín de Tucumán for the Copa Argentina before traveling to the FIFA Club World Cup to be held in the United States. 📸 LUIS ROBAYO - AFP or licensors
Broadcast Pro
23-05-2025
- Business
- Broadcast Pro
Qatar Sports Investments extends Luis Campos' role as Sports Advisor until 2030
Luis Campos will oversee the sports strategy of the whole QSI group – including Paris Saint-Germain men's football and counselling SC Braga. Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), a global leader in sports, entertainment, arts, and culture investments, has renewed the contract of Luis Campos as Sports Advisor. Campos, who initially joined QSI in June 2022 on a three-year term, will now continue in his role until 2030. In this extended capacity, Campos will lead QSI's overarching sports strategy, including his ongoing responsibilities with Paris Saint-Germain's men's football operations and his advisory role with Portuguese club SC Braga, in which QSI holds a minority stake. He will also be tasked with identifying new multi-club football ventures and other potential sports and talent assets for QSI's growing portfolio, while continuing to oversee scouting, recruitment, and talent development across the group. Since joining the organisation, Campos has been instrumental in executing the vision of QSI Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaïfi. Under his guidance, Paris Saint-Germain has enjoyed a period of remarkable sporting success, securing three French Ligue 1 titles, one Coupe de France, three Trophée des Champions titles, and reaching the UEFA Champions League Final, Semi-Final, and Last-16 over the past three seasons—making it one of the most successful European clubs in that span. SC Braga has also seen positive results both domestically and in European competitions. Campos' impact has extended beyond elite competition. He has significantly contributed to QSI's broader expansion and investment strategies, while also playing a key role in nurturing youth talent. PSG's Academy, now operating from its world-class Campus in Poissy, is producing a new generation of standout players, exemplified by the club fielding a record six academy-trained players in a recent Ligue 1 match against Montpellier. SC Braga has likewise developed into one of the premier youth academies in football. Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, QSI Chairman, said: 'We are delighted to renew Luis Campos as Sports Advisor at QSI until 2030. We are building our project for the long-term and Luis has done a great job over the past three years. 'We have great stability, purpose and collective focus within our group, across all our assets, today – for which I thank Luis – and look forward to many more successes and achieving our long-term goals at QSI in the future.' Luis Campos, QSI Sports Advisor, added: 'I am delighted to continue my story with QSI to 2030. We can be very proud of how we have transformed the clubs, companies, projects and ethos within our Group over the last three years, and I truly believe this is only the beginning of our successes. I thank Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaïfi for this full support of me and all our staff; and also for his great vision that drives the QSI Group's unprecedented success. I very much look forward to writing more history at QSI in the coming years.'
