Paris Saint-Germain were held to a 4-4 draw by lowly Amiens SC on Saturday, three days out from facing Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League, but for coach Thomas Tuchel, there is little cause for concern.
Neymar Jr. and Kylian Mbappé were among those who missed the trip to the Stade de la Licorne, while Ander Herrera was used as a makeshift right-back. It was nonetheless a shock when Serhou Guirassy, Gaël Kakuta and Fousseni Diabaté fired the hosts into a 3-0 first-half lead.
"Obviously we lacked concentration at the start of the match," Tuchel said at his post-match press conference. "It shows what mentality we played with. It was too easy to create chances against us. Amiens scored three goals with three shots on target. But the team showed their quality, mentality and attitude after the first half. We completely turned the game around and had several chances to win."
Herrera reduced the arrears on the stroke of half-time and a brace from Tanguy Kouassi - the first of his career - and late Mauro Icardi strike looked to have rescued a 4-3 win before Guirassy grabbed his second of the game at the death.
Tuchel will take a full-strength squad to Dortmund for Tuesday's clash against his former employers in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League. The capital club won five of their six group games, only drawing once, against Real Madrid, and Tuchel is confident of building on that record.
"Why would I be worried?" he asked. "Do you think it'll be the same game in Dortmund? I'm not worried. I trust my players. I know what we did and what we missed. It's human; it's normal. We had a super-complicated game but I know I can trust my team.
Watch: PSG were rather more convincing in beating Olympique Lyonnais 4-2 last Sunday!
"I was angry after the first five minutes when we were 1-0 down. Afterwards I tried to remain calm. These things can happen, even if you don't want them to. Matches played two or three days before a big game can be like that."
Amiens's first-half haul was the first time Paris had conceded three goals in the opening 45 minutes since a 4-4 draw with Olympique Lyonnais back in February 2012. Still on a 23-game unbeaten run in all competitions, Tuchel sees little reason to worry.
"I'm not going to lose my mind," he said. "I always try to make sure the team don't lose. When you make mistakes, these things can happen because it's Ligue 1 Conforama - it's quality! Now everyone will say 'we are worried, we are worried' but that's football."
