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7 months ago
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Luis Enrique has jokingly hit out Micah Richards for not backing Paris Saint-Germain to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, despite his side producing a sensational comeback to defeat Barcelona on Tuesday night.
Having been beaten by the LaLiga outfit 3-2 at the Parc des Princes, Enrique's side got off to a rocky start at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium, with Raphinha putting the hosts 1-0 up after 12 minutes.
Despite that, the French outfit would turn things around, after Ronald Araújo was shown a red card. Ousmane Dembele got the breakthrough just before half-time with Vitinha netting producing a stunning long-range strike to pull the aggregate scores level at 4-4 after the break. Kylian Mbappe scored twice in the final 30 minutes of the match to seal a 6-4 win across the two legs.
Ahead of the quarter-finals, CBS Sports' punditry team had given their predictions on how this season's competition would pan out by selecting their brackets for the seven remaining knockout ties. While Jame Carragher had backed PSG to make the final, Micah Richards believed the Ligue 1 side would not make it past the quarter-final stages.
And during his post-match interview with the broadcaster, Enrique jested with Richards, claiming that their relationship had been soured after the ex-Man City defender had not tipped his team to reach the final.
Luis Enrique has jokingly hit out Micah Richards for not backing PSG to beat Barcelona
Richards was all smiles as Enrique appeared on screen for his post-match interview on CBS
'Luis! How are you?' Richards shouted across the studio as Enrique appeared on the big screen for a post-match interview.
'My friend! Nice to see you!' the former Man City defender added.
Enrique, who was stood in the tunnel at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium, laughed before replying: 'It's good to see you!
'But I'm really upset with all of you,' he added before repeating himself.
'I'm really upset with all of you...'
Richards replied: 'Why?' While Kate Abdo added: 'What did we do?'
'You know why,' The PSG boss responded, jokingly cutting a stern figure.
'Because of the brackets! He knows! He knows! He watches the show!' Richards said.
Richards had backed Barcelona to advance to the semi-finals of the competition instead of the French champions, but believed they would be knocked out by Atletico Madrid, who would go on to face his former side, City in the final.
'All of you predicted that Barcelona were going through to the next phase. And nobody believed in our possibilities.
But the PSG boss was quick to mention how Richards' predictions for the final knockout stages
Enrique said Richards was 'no longer his idol' and joked that he was 'sad' he was at his picks
'How sad I am, how sad I am,' he joked.
Jamie Carragher interrupted: 'No Luis, I had you in the final against Manchester City, in the brackets! You need to watch YouTube again!'
The former Liverpool defender had in fact tipped PSG to beat Barcelona in the quarter-finals and would progress to the showpiece event to take on Man City, after claiming a semi-final victory against Atletico Madrid.
'Oh really! I didn't see you I'm sorry,' Enrique replied. 'I accept your apology Luis,' Carragher responded.
'I can understand [Thierry] Henry, because he was a supporter for Arsenal - but Micah, you were my idol,' the former Barcelona manager joked.
'I thought you were going to be confident in the team. Oh my god,' he said, sending the studio into delirium.
'No, Luis please! Accept my apology - I went against you I'm sorry!' Richards replied joking.
Henry, meanwhile, wasted no time in chosing who would reach the semi-finals, and named his former club, Arsenal, as the outright winner.
Jamie Carragher expects City to repeat last season's feat after toppling PSG in the final
Thierry Henry wasted no time in selecting his beloved Arsenal as this season's winners
Kylian Mbappe, who scored twice in the game, claimed his side were 'ready to go to the final'
Enrique's side will now take on Borussia Dortmund, who also staged a comeback victory to defeat Atletico Madrid 5-4 over two legs last night.
But it seems the sky is the limit for this PSG side, with Mbappe, who will leave the club in the summer, admitting his side are 'are ready to go to the final' after the epic win against Barcelona.
'We are a great team, we had a great match as a team, as a group,' he added.
'We worked for six days, with the idea that we were going to win and we were sure that it would be a great day for the club.
'It’s awesome. And congratulations to all the staff and staff of the team.'
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