Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) manager Christophe Galtier shared his annoyance at Achraf Hakimi’s red card in their Ligue 1 clash against Lorient on Sunday, April 30.
The Moroccan fullback received a yellow card in the fifth minute after a tackle on Romain Favre. He then made a late tackle on Darlin Yongwa in the 20th minute and received a second yellow card.
PSG went on to lose the game 3-1 at the Parc des Princes. Enzo Le Fee, Yongwa, and Bamba Dieng scored for Lorient while Kylian Mbappe netted for the hosts.
After the game, manager Galtier slammed Hakimi for his decision-making that led to his sending off. He said (via Keep Up):
“[There is] no reason for Achraf to be tense and nervous. The second card is very stupid. [There was] no sign this week that he would be tense.
“It’s a big disappointment, and we have to react quickly because we don’t know how many points we’re going to have. Our second half of the season [has been] very, very average.”
He added:
“There needs to be a collective but also an individual awareness. Too many players are looking inward. We have to look ahead. The Troyes match is coming up. We’ve been first since the start of the championship, but we have to finish with victories. We have the ambition to do more.”
Hakimi will now miss PSG’s next clash against Troyes away on May 7.
PSG manager Christophe Galtier urges his side to react to Lorient loss
Christophe Galtier also stated that many PSG players have dropped their standards in the second half of the season.
The second half of the season saw the Parisians being eliminated from the Coupe de France against Olympique Marseille. They also lost 3-0 on aggregate against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.
Speaking about the drop in performances, Galtier said (via PSG Talk):
“We have too many players below their level in this second half of the season.”
The French manager then urged his side to react as they come closer to the end of the Ligue 1 title race. He said:
“We just have to make the players react. We can’t have this kind of content. … Overall, it’s a big disappointment. We have to react quickly.
“We don’t know how many points we will have at the end of the day. OM [Marseille] and Lens are running at full speed in the second half of the season. Ours is very average.”
The Parisians currently hold a five-point lead over second-placed Marseille atop the league table.