PARIS, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Paris St Germain made quite an impression in a 4-1 demolition of Dynamo Kiev in their Champions League Group A opener on Tuesday but coach Carlo Ancelotti rubbished talk his team could win the competition.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Alex and Javier Pastore all scored as the Qatar-backed French club swept past Dynamo but according to Ancelotti, big spenders PSG need to keep their feet on the ground.
"We are not the favourites. We need to stay focused. Our goal is to go through the group stage," the Italian told a news conference.
"We still have five matches to play. It was a very good start but it's just three points."
However, there was slightly more than three points to remember from PSG's performance on an electric night at the Parc des Princes.
"We had already been playing very well against Lille and Toulouse (in previous Ligue 1 matches) but tonight there were very good combinations between the forwards," Ancelotti explained.
"(Jeremy) Menez was key, because he opened up space for Ibrahimovic and Pastore. And our three midfielders (Blaise Matuidi, Clement Chantome and Marco Verratti) did a fantastic job."
Verratti shone the most, showing great aggressiveness as well as an eye for the perfect pass.
"We got more than a result tonight. We produced a great performance and it's good for the atmosphere (at the club)," added Ancelotti.
Having spent over 100 million euros ($130.56 million) on transfers during the close season, and over 200 million euros since they were taken over by Qatar investors, PSG may now have what it takes to target both the Champions League and Ligue 1 having not won the French league since 1994.
They somehow lost last term's title race to modest Montpellier but a return to the Champions League has been much anticipated among fans.
Such are PSG's riches in the squad that Ancelotti could rest some of his defenders at the weekend despite Thiago Silva and Alex both scoring and looking solid on Tuesday.
With Mamadou Sakho possibly back from injury on Saturday, the France centre back could start at Bastia.
"I may make some changes so some players can rest a little," said Ancelotti. ($1 = 0.7660 euros)
article source: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/soccer-psg-not-among-champions-league-favourites-says-220652129--sow.html
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