Appearing as a guest on his former Monaco teammate Jérôme Rothen’s show on RMC, Patrice Evra notably gave his thoughts on Paris Saint-Germain’s recent struggles in Europe, as well as commenting on the direction of the club as a whole.

The former left-back first explained that he “wasn’t surprised” about the Champions League Round of 16 exit at the hands of Bayern Munich. For Evra, who won the competition in 2008 with Manchester United, PSG play “with a cigar in their mouths” when it comes to winning Ligue 1, which means they are unable to raise their game when it comes to the biggest stages.

The ex-France captain also points out a lack of support on the part of the rest of the country, pointing out that many Marseille fans celebrated their Classique rivals’ exit from Europe last month. 

Evra also laments what he sees as a lack of recognition given to the club’s own legends, the star treatment given to some unproven players, and a focus on the club’s off-pitch branding: 

“In the VIP stands, you don’t see Bernard Lama, instead it’s Kim Kardashian and the like. It’s a show business club, football isn’t the priority, no. Nasser Al Khelaifi loves the club, they’re doing a great job – but the message seems to be that when I’m going to watch a PSG game, it’s to watch a concert. I’m in the VIP lodge, there’s Champagne, appetisers… But guys, where are the old players?”

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin