Maza will not join PSG this winter despite conflicting reports

Ibrahim Maza will not join Paris Saint-Germain in the next winter transfer window, despite conflicting reports in the European press about a possible move. The Bayer Leverkusen and Algeria player has attracted interest from several clubs, but PSG is reportedly not planning to make an offer in January, according to information attributed to a French broadcaster. The club is not currently intending to pursue his signing.

That position comes amid questions over whether Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s serious injury could prompt a change to PSG’s winter plans. However, the club’s coach, Luis Enrique, had already dismissed the idea that the Georgian winger’s absence would automatically lead to new signings.

Before the eighth-round French championship match against Olympique Lyon, which his team won 2-0, the coach defended the depth of his squad. Luis Enrique said that “no injury makes it necessary to recruit new players” and recalled that, from the start of the season, he believed his team could cope with the absence of two or three important players. He added that the club would still monitor the market and could make a signing if it identified a genuine need.

Reports of PSG’s interest in Maza do not all point in the same direction. A German broadcaster reported concrete interest from the club in the 20-year-old and said his entourage knew about it. By contrast, reports that no January offer is planned suggest that any interest would not lead to an immediate move.

If PSG decided to strengthen its squad in the winter, it could instead consider a young player with significant potential and a modest market value. That would not necessarily mean targeting an attacking position. The club is also counting on Mika Godts, who scored his first goal for the team on Monday against Olympique Lyon, while no clearly defined plan to recruit an attacking player to cover for Kvaratskhelia’s absence has been reported.

Maza, meanwhile, has made a strong start to the season with Bayer Leverkusen, scoring three goals and providing three assists in 10 matches. Those performances have drawn attention to him, but for now they have not changed the prospect of a winter without a move to PSG.