Paris St-Germain boss Luis Enrique says his side are ready to suffer at Aston Villa as they look to see off the Premier League side in their Champions League quarter-final.
The Ligue 1 champions travel to Villa Park with a 3-1 advantage from last week’s first leg in Paris and are heavy favourites to progress to the last four.
Villa – managed by former Villa boss Unai Emery – are unbeaten in 17 games in all competitions on home soil but Enrique says the Villa Park atmosphere will not scare his side.
“For us, it is always a pleasure to play and compete in a stadium like this, with so much history,” Enrique said.
“We love playing football. Our teams and supporters are accustomed to this. It is going to be a big match, there is certainly no problem with the atmosphere. It is a motivation, more than anything.”
A touch of Paris on the streets of Birmingham 👀#AVFCPSG | #UCL
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— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) April 14, 2025
PSG were excellent last week, as they were in beating Liverpool in the last 16, and have been made favourites by many to finally lift the trophy this season.
But Emery is expecting a tough test in the west midlands.
“The tie isn’t over, it is still open. It is going to be difficult,” Emery said. “We are prepared to suffer if necessary to get our aim and win this match.
“At the end of the match there will be only one team in the semi-final and the other team is out. That is the beauty of the competition.
“Aston Villa are down at the moment but the tie remains very open and both teams know. There is no over-confidence in our side, we have got motivation to overcome the problems Aston Villa can set us and reach our aim of winning the match.
“When people talk about favourites before the match…the road of the Champions League is full of favourites who have been knocked out. We knew we were better and deserved to win in the first leg, but there is a second story. Who is going to win tomorrow?
“We have the advantage, but we don’t speculate about certainties. If Aston Villa are better than us they can overcome us, so we need to show we deserve to be in the semi-final.”
