Zlatan Ibrahimovic must play into form for Paris Saint-Germain - Blanc

Paris Saint-Germain manager Laurent Blanc says
he has "no choice" but to hope that record goal
scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic rediscovers his best
form.
Ibrahimovic, 34, had little joy against Real Madrid
as the French side were held to a 0-0 draw in
their Champions League Group A meeting in Paris
on Wednesday.
The Swedish striker has found the net six times in
six league matches this season and became the
French champions' all-time leading goalscorer
when he netted a brace of penalties in their win
over Marseille this month.
The former Barcelona player had his start to the
season disrupted by injury, however, and he
rarely looked like troubling Real Madrid's centre-
back pairing of Raphael Varane and Sergio
Ramos.
"You have to be optimistic and that's the role of
the manager because we're aware that the squad
isn't necessarily going to develop too much
during the year," Blanc told a post-match news
conference. "You have to make do with the guys
who are playing -- those who are in difficulty and
those who are lacking fitness.
"Everyone has to be strong in a match like that to
worry a team like Real Madrid. So I have no
choice.
"It's up to us to ensure that all the players,
whether it's Zlatan or the others, might be in the
best of form in the very near future."
Ibrahimovic was not the only PSG player to
struggle, as a front three that also included
Edinson Cavani and Angel Di Maria failed to reach
the heights that much of the rest of the team did.
Blanc said he could leave the Swede out of his
team in the hope that he would return in better
form but the former France manager does not
believe that that is the right way to approach the
issue.
"Yes I have the choice of not putting him in the
starting XI -- to give him two weeks off too," he
said. "But I also have the choice of encouraging
him, to work him, whether it's him or another
player, so that he can be at his best level when
he needs to be -- that's to say in matches like
today but also in much more decisive matches
over the course of the season."
The scoreless draw in Paris has put pressure on
PSG ahead of another meeting between the
teams in Madrid in two weeks' time -- a game
which could eventually decide who tops the
group.
With this in mind, Blanc said he could not be
satisfied with the outcome of Wednesday's
match.
"No, because we didn't get the result that we
wanted," he admitted. "When that happens,
you're obviously a little bit disappointed. The first
half was a lot more disappointing than the
second.
"We had a lot of ambition at the start of the
match but to have it is one thing. You have to
have the means to put it into practice on the
pitch and that was more difficult than expected."


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