Ligue 1: PSG players vote for Marquinhos as captain

This time for sure: Marquinhos remains captain of PSG after a player vote on Tuesday. Info from our comrades at L’Equipe. The news may seem a little dated, knowing that the 29-year-old Brazilian international defender had already been confirmed in this role by a vote of his teammates last week. Except that a new ballot was carried out this Tuesday by secret ballot. According to information from Le Parisien, five players were put to the vote, “Marqui”, Kylian Mbappé, Presnel Kimpembe, Danilo Pereira and even Marco Verratti. And this while the future of the latter is more than uncertain, just over a week from the end of the transfer market. Luis Campos and Luis Enrique have also told him in recent days that the club no longer counts on him.

Still, Marquinhos, very to his advantage on Saturday in Toulouse (1-1), was therefore acclaimed by his partners. According to the indiscretions of RMC radio, the former Roma player wants to stay in Paris… despite an offensive from the Saudi club Al-Ittihad, where Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kanté and Fabinho play. We can also doubt his indestructible status in the eyes of “Lucho”, who brought him off the bench against Lorient (1-1) before using him as a right-back at the end of the match in Toulouse…

Which “Lucho” explained this about the armband before this match of the second day of Ligue 1: “It’s simple: I don’t choose the captain, it’s the players who choose the player they want to represent them. They decide. (…) Experience tells me that it is not the coach’s job to appoint a captain. I want him to be chosen by the players and that’s what will happen. They vote.” Regarding the choice to place Marquinhos on the bench during the first lift, the Spanish technician had said the following: “I make my decisions based on what I see during the week. Marquinhos had some physical issues during the week. My role is to make decisions. You’re going to have to get used to it: I’m going to change positions a lot, bring players in and out, change starters.” Including those with status.

With 409 matches in Rouge et Bleu, Marquinhos, 29, who arrived at the club in 2013 and under contract until 2028, is the third most capped player in the history of Paris Saint-Germain behind Marco Verratti (416) and the house record holder, Jean-Marc Pilorget (435). He could therefore set a new record during the 2023-24 season.