PSG, Luis Enrique sweat on Vitinha’s availability ahead of Champions League semis Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique said on Tuesday he was unsure if midfield metronome Vitinha would be fit to play against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals.
The Portuguese central midfielder will miss PSG’s Ligue 1 2025-26 clash against Nantes on Wednesday due to a heel inflammation.
“We’ll take a calm and measured approach to see how the injured players can make a comeback. But I don’t know,” he told reporters when asked if Vitinha would be back in time for next Tuesday’s semifinal first leg at the Parc des Princes.
“We need to manage Vitinha’s minor injury; some players are a bit tired or have a few niggles,” the Spaniard also told PSGTV.
Should the 26-year-old be unavailable, his place at the heart of the PSG midfield could be filled by the returning Fabian Ruiz.
Alongside Vitinha and Joao Neves, Ruiz formed the midfield trio that anchored much of PSG’s success last season as it won a maiden Champions League title and lifted the Ligue 1 trophy.
The Spaniard returned for the final 18 minutes of PSG’s 2-1 league loss at home to Lyon last weekend as he continues his comeback from a knee injury.
ALSO READ | Rodri set to miss Burnley trip as Manchester City chases Arsenal in Premier League
Luis Enrique cooled expectations on the 30-year-old, however, as he said Ruiz would need “time to regain fitness” after spending three months on the sidelines.
“Fabian Ruiz needs more matches and minutes to recover,” Luis Enrique insisted, before adding he was nonetheless “happy” with his return against Lyon.
The former Barcelona and Spain coach warned that even as PSG close in on a repeat of its double-winning season this term, he still demands “more” from all his charges.
Exciting Senegalese 18-year-old Ibrahim Mbaye was not included in the squad for Sunday’s defeat to Lyon, with Luis Enrique explaining, “Every minute you get to play for PSG must be special. I have no regrets about Mbaye, but you have to be ready. He was ready, but I expect much more from all the players.”
Victory in the French capital against Nantes on Wednesday would send PSG three points clear of surprise Ligue 1 title challenger Lens with five matches remaining in the campaign.
Published on Apr 21, 2026
#PSG #Luis #Enrique #sweat #Vitinhas #availability #ahead #Champions #League #semis
Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique said on Tuesday he was unsure if midfield metronome Vitinha would be fit to play against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals.
The Portuguese central midfielder will miss PSG’s Ligue 1 2025-26 clash against Nantes on Wednesday due to a heel inflammation.
“We’ll take a calm and measured approach to see how the injured players can make a comeback. But I don’t know,” he told reporters when asked if Vitinha would be back in time for next Tuesday’s semifinal first leg at the Parc des Princes.
“We need to manage Vitinha’s minor injury; some players are a bit tired or have a few niggles,” the Spaniard also told PSGTV.
Should the 26-year-old be unavailable, his place at the heart of the PSG midfield could be filled by the returning Fabian Ruiz.
Alongside Vitinha and Joao Neves, Ruiz formed the midfield trio that anchored much of PSG’s success last season as it won a maiden Champions League title and lifted the Ligue 1 trophy.
The Spaniard returned for the final 18 minutes of PSG’s 2-1 league loss at home to Lyon last weekend as he continues his comeback from a knee injury.
ALSO READ | Rodri set to miss Burnley trip as Manchester City chases Arsenal in Premier League
Luis Enrique cooled expectations on the 30-year-old, however, as he said Ruiz would need “time to regain fitness” after spending three months on the sidelines.
“Fabian Ruiz needs more matches and minutes to recover,” Luis Enrique insisted, before adding he was nonetheless “happy” with his return against Lyon.
The former Barcelona and Spain coach warned that even as PSG close in on a repeat of its double-winning season this term, he still demands “more” from all his charges.
Exciting Senegalese 18-year-old Ibrahim Mbaye was not included in the squad for Sunday’s defeat to Lyon, with Luis Enrique explaining, “Every minute you get to play for PSG must be special. I have no regrets about Mbaye, but you have to be ready. He was ready, but I expect much more from all the players.”
Victory in the French capital against Nantes on Wednesday would send PSG three points clear of surprise Ligue 1 title challenger Lens with five matches remaining in the campaign.
Published on Apr 21, 2026
![Sooryavanshi ready for international cricket but must work on technique to become all-format batter: Sanjay Manjrekar Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has become a poster boy for Indian cricket after notable performances in the domestic circuit, the under-19s and in the IPL where he scored a record-breaking century in his debut season (2025) for the Rajasthan Royals.He has taken it one notch higher this term, already accumulating 246 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 236.54 including two fifties. With growing shouts over his inclusion in the Indian team, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar believes he is ready to don the national team colours.“Looking at IPL as a platform, to stake a claim for the Indian T20 team and keeping an eye on his performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali as well, where he’s got a 100 [vs Maharashtra], I think he’s done enough. If somebody’s lighting up this stage with this performance, then he’s ready,” Manjrekar said on Sportstar’s Insight Edge podcast.However, he explained that his inclusion will not be straightforward due to the long list of openers waiting in the wings for India in the shortest format, including his RR teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal and Test skipper Shubman Gill.“He might be ready, but are the others ready to make way for it? Because there is a huge crowd to bat at number one and two for India currently,” he reasoned.[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58JRdBRAbIk[/embed]The former Mumbai batter pointed out that the Bihar prodigy belongs to the new-age T20 batters, who have the knack of making space to hit the ball. However, he explained that a lot of work had to be done with his technique if he wishes to become an all-format cricketer.“Take all the consistent T20 batters in the last few years, Sooryavanshi will stay leg side and hit a ball on middle stump through point because he’s staying leg side of the ball. In Test cricket, the advice is to get close to the ball. You will not get 20 runs in England or Australia, South Africa by staying away from the ball,” he opined.He further added, “If you want your kid to be famous and rich, T20 batting is for you. If you want him to get the respect of people like us, the critics, then get him to get close to the line of the ball.”Published on Apr 21, 2026 #Sooryavanshi #ready #international #cricket #work #technique #allformat #batter #Sanjay #Manjrekar](https://i2.wp.com/ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/50lqfv/article70888348.ece/alternates/LANDSCAPE_1200/2150_19_4_2026_16_16_32_1_IPL_19042026_05.JPG?ssl=1 "Sooryavanshi ready for international cricket but must work on technique to become all-format batter: Sanjay Manjrekar Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has become a poster boy for Indian cricket after notable performances in the domestic circuit, the under-19s and in the IPL where he scored a record-breaking century in his debut season (2025) for the Rajasthan Royals.He has taken it one notch higher this term, already accumulating 246 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 236.54 including two fifties. With growing shouts over his inclusion in the Indian team, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar believes he is ready to don the national team colours.“Looking at IPL as a platform, to stake a claim for the Indian T20 team and keeping an eye on his performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali as well, where he’s got a 100 [vs Maharashtra], I think he’s done enough. If somebody’s lighting up this stage with this performance, then he’s ready,” Manjrekar said on Sportstar’s Insight Edge podcast.However, he explained that his inclusion will not be straightforward due to the long list of openers waiting in the wings for India in the shortest format, including his RR teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal and Test skipper Shubman Gill.“He might be ready, but are the others ready to make way for it? Because there is a huge crowd to bat at number one and two for India currently,” he reasoned.[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58JRdBRAbIk[/embed]The former Mumbai batter pointed out that the Bihar prodigy belongs to the new-age T20 batters, who have the knack of making space to hit the ball. However, he explained that a lot of work had to be done with his technique if he wishes to become an all-format cricketer.“Take all the consistent T20 batters in the last few years, Sooryavanshi will stay leg side and hit a ball on middle stump through point because he’s staying leg side of the ball. In Test cricket, the advice is to get close to the ball. You will not get 20 runs in England or Australia, South Africa by staying away from the ball,” he opined.He further added, “If you want your kid to be famous and rich, T20 batting is for you. If you want him to get the respect of people like us, the critics, then get him to get close to the line of the ball.”Published on Apr 21, 2026 #Sooryavanshi #ready #international #cricket #work #technique #allformat #batter #Sanjay #Manjrekar")
Post Comment