Luis Enrique admitted Tottenham ‘deserved’ to lift the UEFA Super Cup after his Paris Saint-Germain side fought back from two goals down to win on penalties.
Spurs had appeared on course for a shock victory in Thomas Frank’s first competitive match in charge as Micky van de Ven and newly appointed captain Cristian Romero netted either side of half time to stun the Champions League holders.
But PSG enjoyed the lion’s share of possession throughout the contest and the pressure eventually told, with Lee Kang-in arrowing an emphatic strike beyond Guglielmo Vicario in the 85th minute at Udinese’s Stadio Friuli.
The north Londoners were clinging on as the final whistle beckoned and Goncalo Ramos headed home Ousmane Dembele’s pinpoint cross from the right flank to level in the fourth minute of stoppage time
Vitinha missed PSG’s opening effort as the match went straight to penalties, but an inspired Lucas Chevalier denied Van de Ven before Mathys Tel fired wide to put the Parisians on the cusp of a fifth trophy for 2025.
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It fell to Nuno Mendes to hold his nerve and the Portugal full-back did just that, making no mistake with the decisive spot-kick to send PSG’s travelling support into raptures.
The triumph capped off a historic few months for the French giants, who became European champions in May to add to their Ligue 1, French Cup and the Trophee des Champions crowns.
Speaking shortly after the clash, a somewhat relieved Enrique asked TNT Sports’ Jules Breach: ‘Do you think we deserved that? For 80 minutes we didn’t deserve that.
‘I think Tottenham deserved winning the match because we can feel that they were in form, we can feel that they have been training for six weeks.
‘They played a great match and we have been training only for six days, but sometimes football is unfair.
‘And I have to say that we were very unlucky. In the last ten minutes, we could have scored two goals.
‘I have to say that my players had faith until the last minute, like our supporters.
‘Football is unpredictable and in that sense, I have to say that we were very lucky.’
Enrique believes his players were likely feeling the effects of such a quick turnaround on the back of a gruelling campaign, with their Club World Cup final defeat to Chelsea falling just a month earlier.
‘Absolutely, from the first minute when the players touched the ball, when the players played without having the time to think about where you have to pass,’ the Spaniard explained.
‘Yeah, a lot of unprecise passes and it’s difficult to play the way we want to play if you don’t train, if you haven’t got the time to train.
‘I have to say that it was like a miracle.’
Enrique singled out new signing Lucas Chevalier for special praise, applauding the former Lille goalkeeper’s ‘personality’ both on and off the pitch.
‘He’s a big personality which is so important to have if you want to stay at a club like PSG, a lot of pressure around us,’ he added.
‘But I’m very happy for him because he shows that personality and also for the players who come from the bench because they are so important.
‘All of them want to play in the starting line-up, but they did great to draw that match and win a penalty shootout.’