PSG may have found the perfect midfield trio

After a dominating victory in Le Classique on Sunday, Paris Saint-Germain are in high spirits, with many singing the praises of their starting three midfielders.

The trio of Joao Neves (20), Vitinha (24) and Warren Zaïre-Emery (18) put together a masterclass in that 3-0 triumph over Olympique de Marseille, vaulting Les Parisiens to the top of Ligue 1.

Neves put PSG in front after only seven minutes on Sunday, with the Portuguese playmaker showing off his passing range and close ball control throughout the encounter.

Vitinha showed excellent playmaking ability and dribbling while displaying tremendous composure.

The third member of that trio, Zaïre-Emery, who’s been under plenty of scrutiny for his up-and-down performances, put together perhaps his best outing of the season.

The Frenchman’s work ethic was evident throughout the encounter, winning his share of balls for PSG and launching plenty of counterattacks going forward.

All three players seemed to understand each other well on the field, and it’s a formula that manager Luis Enrique may want to consider keeping together long-term. They all seem to complement each other well with slightly different attributes.

Neves appears to be ideally suited as the team’s technician while being able to react quickly to an action on the field and is capable of retaining possession in tight spaces.

For Vitinha, his quick ball control and ability to get the ball into dangerous areas were a nightmare for Marseille to handle over the weekend, while his skillset make it difficult for the opposing team to transition effectively.

As for Zaïre-Emery, we saw the best version of his game against Marseille, showing maturity and stamina while giving the PSG midfield some much-needed balance.

Sunday was the third time the trio started together in a midfield three this season and in each instance, they helped their team win convincingly.

All three started in the midfield when they defeated Montpellier HSC 6-0 and beat LOSC Lille 3-1. Luis Enrique broke them up originally, but with the performance all three showed last weekend, it’s hard to imagine he’d do it again anytime soon.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre