PSG have one of the most diverse squads in European football
Paris Saint-Germain chiefs are reportedly concerned about the lack of French that is being spoken across the club.
According to Marca, the language is starting to be spoken less and less and is actually fading out in the dressing room as a result of the Parisians’ diverse squad, with many of the first-team players not speaking French as their first language.
The report claims that boss Mauricio Pochettino rarely uses the French language, instead opting to address the squad primarily in his native Spanish or English.
During his time in England, while in charge of Tottenham Hotspur, the club instructed that he must speak English in public.
This was a drastic change for the Argentine, who spoke with a translator throughout his time at Southampton prior to joining Spurs.
Despite a number of his South American coaching staff boasting a ‘good’ understanding of French, it it still not the go-to language of the squad in general, and the players now realise this.
In recent times, a long-standing tradition enforced by the PSG hierarchy was that new signings must learn French so that they could communicate with team-mates both on and off the pitch.
However, this tradition is said to have stopped and is not an instruction anymore.
A number of the nine-time French champions’ star-men – including Neymar, Angel Di Maria and Keylor Navas – are said to understand the language, but choose not to use it.
In contrast, recent signings Lionel Messi and Nuno Mendes have no knowledge of French.
The situation at the Parc des Princes can be summarised by the fact that starlet Kylian Mbappe – who evidently operates in the capital of his home country – is believed to make an effort to speak either Spanish or English to accommodate other players.
It is thought that fellow English speakers Idrissa Gueye and Abdou Diallo also do this.
PSG are currently top of Ligue 1 with an eight point margin and also sit a point clear in Group A of the Champions League.
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