Thomas Tuchel Baffled by His Side's Tactical Inconsistencies as PSG Rescue a 2-2 Against Napoli

Angel di Maria scored an exquisite, last-gasp equaliser for PSG as the Parisian side drew 2-2 with Napoli in the Parc de Princes. 

Lorenzo Insigne opened the scoring for the away side, before Mário Rui's own-goal pulled PSG level. In the 77th minute, Dries Mertens seemed to have won it for Napoli with a late goal, but di Maria's curling effort restored parity in the 93rd minute. 

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Speaking about his side's performance, Thomas Tuchel said this to Football Italia: “In my view, we started very well and had a strong opening 15 minutes, then I don’t know why, but we lost our shape.

“We tried to make things too complicated and consequently gave the ball away cheaply."

The former Borussia Dortmund manager was confused about his side's inconsistencies in the tactical side of the game. He questioned: "I don’t understand why we struggle to have one approach and one shape for an entire match. We last 15 minutes, then lose our way.

"We’ve got to improve on a tactical level. For 30 minutes in the first half, we didn’t play as a team.”

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However, despite Tuchel's disappointment with the performance, he reserved praise for Napoli. "Napoli have been playing together for a few years and have a very tactical approach, with a lot of quality, and they are difficult to take on," he said. 

Speaking about some of the key moments of the game, the PSG manager said: “Napoli’s goal to go in front was only fair in the circumstances. We changed some things in the second half to play it simpler and quicker. 

"I think it went much better, as we had more intensity, more passes, more chances and tried to recover the ball with high pressing.

“We deserved the equaliser, then Mertens scored. It was almost a fluke. It’s difficult to react in that situation to a Napoli side with a lot of quality, but we did react."

The 2-2 draw leaves PSG's chances of qualification from Group C in limbo, as they currently sit third in the group. Tuchel explained his side's predicament: “It all comes down to qualification now. I respect the group and knew from the start it would be complicated against Liverpool and Napoli.

"We are not the favourites, it doesn’t matter whether you believe me or not when I say that. We can’t be surprised that it’s a tough group.”