Luis Enrique jokes back at Dembélé’s request for a holiday

“He wants a holiday, so he’ll have a holiday”: Luis Enrique responded to Ousmane Dembélé with a joke on Friday. The exchange followed a quip from the forward on Wednesday, when he said he might ask for “another holiday” after Paris’s emphatic win over Manchester City. Luis Enrique smiled as he answered him.

“He’s the boss! If he wants a holiday and we give him one, then he’ll have one. But he’s always joking. I like the way he lives football and his passion for the game. It’s clearly a joke, but I’m always open to giving players what they want, under normal conditions,” the coach said.

Dembélé had also joked about wanting to set the record straight, explaining that he had gone on holiday after the international break. Another line, “Being on holiday means coming to Campus to train,” captured the playful tone of the exchange.

The moment came before Paris’s trip to Strasbourg on Saturday at 17:15, in the 7th round of Ligue 1. With Dembélé, Paris will seek a fifth consecutive win. “We prepare for every match in the same way,” Luis Enrique said. He also pointed to the quality of Strasbourg’s players and the extra motivation they would have against his team, adding that a win would put Paris among the championship’s top three.