MNM Trio Will Need to Accept Sitting on the Bench, Says PSG Coach

Football - Ligue 1 - Nantes v Paris St Germain - The Stade de la Beaujoire - Louis Fonteneau, Nantes, France - September 3, 2022 Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - Ligue 1 - Nantes v Paris St Germain - The Stade de la Beaujoire - Louis Fonteneau, Nantes, France - September 3, 2022 Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal. (Reuters)
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MNM Trio Will Need to Accept Sitting on the Bench, Says PSG Coach

Football - Ligue 1 - Nantes v Paris St Germain - The Stade de la Beaujoire - Louis Fonteneau, Nantes, France - September 3, 2022 Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - Ligue 1 - Nantes v Paris St Germain - The Stade de la Beaujoire - Louis Fonteneau, Nantes, France - September 3, 2022 Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal. (Reuters)

Paris St Germain will need all their resources if they are to shine on all fronts this season, and it means that their formidable "MNM" attacking trio will need to take a break at times, whether they like it or not.

While Mauricio Pochettino would rarely replace Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe or Neymar, his successor Christophe Galtier has not hesitated to put the Brazilian on the bench on Saturday, three days before their Champions League opener against Juventus.

Neymar came on around the hour mark but it was Mbappe who made way for his fellow forward in their 3-0 win at Nantes and the France player did not show any sign of frustration.

Messi is the one who played the most among the three, although he was also recalled to the bench in the closing stages against Monaco and Toulouse.

Galtier, who took over this season, had warned that the team would come first, and he has been true to his word as PSG scored a record 24 goals in their opening six league matches.

"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," said Galtier.

With a packed schedule with the World Cup looming in the European autumn, Galtier said there was little choice.

"You say it's new, but it's an obligation for everyone because of the very busy schedule," he explained.

"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."

Center back Sergio Ramos was also given a relative rest against Nantes, only coming on in the 62nd minute.

"Everyone has to be ready to play. The most important thing is the team. We have quality in both the starters and the substitutes," said center back Presnel Kimpembe.

"We have a good group. Everyone knows that. We take advantage of each other to be as good as possible."



Number of Tennis Players Worldwide Goes Past 100 Million, Federation Says

Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Final - Italy v Netherlands - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 24, 2024  Italy's Jannik Sinner during his singles match against Netherlands' Tallon Griekspoor REUTERS/Jon Nazca
Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Final - Italy v Netherlands - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 24, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner during his singles match against Netherlands' Tallon Griekspoor REUTERS/Jon Nazca
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Number of Tennis Players Worldwide Goes Past 100 Million, Federation Says

Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Final - Italy v Netherlands - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 24, 2024  Italy's Jannik Sinner during his singles match against Netherlands' Tallon Griekspoor REUTERS/Jon Nazca
Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Final - Italy v Netherlands - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 24, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner during his singles match against Netherlands' Tallon Griekspoor REUTERS/Jon Nazca

The number of people who play tennis has surpassed 100 million worldwide, according to the International Tennis Federation.
A global report released by the federation on Thursday said that nearly 106 million people around the world played at least one game of tennis in the last year, an increase of 25% compared to 2019.
According to The Associated Press, the federation said it was on track to add 30 million players to the game since that report in 2019.
The total number of women who play tennis grew by 8%, but the proportion of female players decreased from 47% in 2019 to 40% now. The federation said there are 13% more coaches in general, and 24% are women, compared to 20% in 2019.
ITF tennis development director Luca Santilli said there was no “specific reason" for the decrease in the percentage of women players, but he expected that the increase in the number of female coaches was going to help make a “difference” in getting more women playing the game.