Paris Saint Germain manager Christophe Galtier has sounded out a firm warning to the club’s superstar trio of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
The three star players have been told that they will accept a role on the bench whether they like it or not.
Before the arrival of Galtier, former PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino didn’t use to rotate his squad too often. However, Galtier is not afraid to do so as he started Neymar on the bench for the game against Nantes on Saturday evening.
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The Brazilian eventually came on around the hour mark, replacing France star Mbappe.
Despite being subbed off, Mbappe did not show any sign of discontent towards the manager’s decision.
Galtier warned that the team will always come first and he is doing a fantastic job after PSG scored a record 24 goals in their first six Ligue 1 matches.
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He said: “I talked about it twice -- once with each of them and once with the whole squad, to tell them that this is how it was going to be and that we had to have the right attitude and accept it.
“You say it's new, but it's an obligation for everyone because of the very busy schedule.”
He added: “We play a lot, every three days, then every four days, then there is the World Cup. Everyone has to understand that they won't be able to play all the games.”
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Away from Mbappe, Messi and Neymar, star defender Sergio Ramos was also benched for the game against Nantes.
The Spanish former Real Madrid captain was introduced in the 62nd minute.
Fellow defender Presnel Kimpembe has said: “Everyone has to be ready to play. The most important thing is the team. We have quality in both the starters and the substitutes.
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“We have a good group. Everyone knows that. We take advantage of each other to be as good as possible.”
PSG will now be focused on the Champions League as they will get their European campaign underway on Tuesday night.
First up is a tough test against Serie A giants Juventus, Portuguese side Benfica and Israeli club Maccabi Haifa are the other two sides in PSG’s group.
Topics: Paris Saint-Germain, Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe
Marcus Chan