Marquinhos made his stance clear to the press before the UEFA Super Cup as Paris Saint-Germain go up against Tottenham. The first choice keeper is almost certainly out of the door: the captain loves this figure as a "friend", "leader", and "beautiful person", but he is ready to move on with the team.
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‘We always want to keep winning’
Marquinhos was not one of the nine men from the PSG squad to earn a nomination for the Ballon d'Or. It would have been the second time he has received this recognition after acting as a midfielder for the club in 2019. However, he cares little for this fact, as what matters most to him is the work of the group.
“The collective is most important. I am 31, I know how football is. I was nominated a few years ago. Between being nominated and winning the Champions League, I prefer the Champions League.”
The Brazilian bagged his move from AS Roma to the French capital in the summer of 2013, and he has been the club captain since his compatriot, Thiago Silva, set off for Chelsea in 2020. He has seen a lot over the last twelve years, making 491 appearances and serving the squad under six managers.
Yet, he has seen nothing like the last seven months at the club before this year. By May, the team had won the Trophée des Champions, the Ligue 1 title, the Coupe de France, and their first Champions League crown with a 5-0 thrashing of Inter Milan. Tears flowed down his face at the realisation of the history that the camp were creating, but his focus has now shifted to the targets on the horizon.
"Starting a new season after winning so much last season is really enjoyable and motivating. When we won, it was an incredible moment in my life. But the next day, I was thinking about what's next and winning again. We know both feelings: winning and losing in a final. We know which one we want.”
PSG have not played in the Super Cup since 1996 when they suffered a 9-2 defeat against Juventus over two legs. It is the first time they have qualified as the top team in Europe, and the first time that the 31-year-old gets the chance to fight for this silverware. He is looking forward to playing in Udine.
"It's a pleasure to start a season like this, as the winner of the last Champions League. We're getting ready to play in a final, and it's really exciting, it's the first time I'll experience this as a Paris Saint-Germain player. We are competitors, and we always want to keep winning by working even harder.”
The Parisians are pushing for more records. If they had beaten Chelsea in the Club World Cup final, then they would have been 90 minutes away from the third sextuple in the history of the sport after Barcelona in 2009 and Bayern Munich in 2020. If they fulfil the desire of Luis Enrique to retain the Champions League, they will pull off a feat only matched by Real Madrid during the last 35 years.
There is no guarantee of staying at the top of the pile, but it is a challenge Marquinhos is embracing.
“That's what we do as a team, as a club. Winning is great, but we always want more. Our goal for the season is to keep fighting for every trophy and win titles, something very few teams manage to do."
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‘Tottenham are better prepared’
Last week, Lucas Chevalier completed a switch across France from fellow Ligue 1 outfit Lille to put pen to paper for the Parisians. Along with the arrival of Renato Marin, the presence of two new shot stoppers signals the end of the road for Gianluigi Donnarumma after he spent four years at the club.
“Dona is part of PSG's history, and he always will be. We're so proud of everything he's done. We thank him from the bottom of our hearts. We don't know whether he's going to leave or stay. If he stays, we welcome him with open arms because he's what he pulled off last year was incredible.”
The 31-year-old will not be happy to see the Italian leave the club. But with a year to go on his contract, PSG refuse to be backed into a corner and are invested in a philosophy that places the collective above the interests of the individual. It is a reality the club captain is willing to accept.
“He's a beautiful person. He's a great leader. He's a great friend. He was so important in the dressing room for all of these years that he's been with us. But that's the name of the game. It's football. I can talk of a lot of players who left and I was upset about it. If he were to leave that would be a blow to me, but I know that there'll be others who go and others that will come in and we continue going.”
PSG are not settling with the squad that made the historic steps towards glory only a few months ago. This week, Illia Zabarnyi wrapped up a move from Bournemouth to PSG for a fee of £57 million.
As the owner of the armband, Marquinhos must make sure the newcomers integrate more easily.
"We know that the captain plays an important role when a new player arrives, as was the case for me when I first joined the club. We are there to help them and put them in the best possible conditions.”
He has not forgotten the importance of the leaders who helped him to bed in at PSG as a teenager.
“New signings need to feel at home. We have a very demanding coach, so when you're not used to that, it's not easy. And that's when we have an important role to play in talking to them and explaining things. The aim is for them to adapt to the team's and the club's philosophy as quickly as possible."
However, even he has never experienced the schedule that has constrained the side in this showdown. With no football in the legs between this match and the Club World Cup final, PSG are entering the unknown. Their opponents played six fixtures in preseason and have enjoyed better physical prep.
"I am proud and happy to be here, to have the opportunity to win another trophy. It's going to be very difficult, we only resumed training a week ago, whereas Tottenham Hotspur are better prepared.”
Yet, the Brazilian believes that he can be the first man to lift this piece of silverware for the Parisians.
“But even if we're not yet at 100%, I know we'll give it our all tomorrow to try and get the result we want. I'm still hungry: I want to achieve things, help the younger players, motivate them, and make sure they move forward. We have a coach who will continue to motivate and continue to push us.”
