BUDAPEST, Hungary — Paris Saint-Germain’s injury worries have cleared up ahead of the Champions League final against Arsenal on Saturday.
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PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé has been managing a calf issue in the final weeks of the season but the reigning Ballon d’Or winner said Friday he is “100% ready and raring to go.”
There was more concern about the health of defender Achraf Hakimi, who hasn’t played since sustaining a right thigh injury against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals on April 28.
However, the attacking right back, who was selected by Morocco for the World Cup this week, was also spotted in training on Tuesday and has been given the all-clear by PSG coach Luis Enrique, who said Hakimi was “OK and able to play tomorrow.”
PSG will be looking to successfully defend the title the team won in record-breaking fashion last year with a 5-0 win over Inter Milan — the most lopsided final in the competition’s 70-year history.
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Dembélé was substituted in the first half of PSG’s final game in its latest title-winning campaign in the French league, a loss to Paris FC on May 17.
“I wasn’t scared about missing the final,” Dembélé told a news conference at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary. “I stopped as soon as I felt the niggle (against Paris FC).”
Dembélé said the season has been “quite complicated for everyone at PSG” after reaching the final of the Club World Cup last summer, curtailing the team’s offseason and essentially meaning it has played all year round.
For that reason, Luis Enrique said one of his priorities in the lead-up to the final has been “managing rest time of my players during training” as much as studying Arsenal.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
