Wijnaldum slammed for PSG struggles as ex-Liverpool star faces 'difficulty'

Georginio Wijnaldum was once again slammed by French media for his performance against Club Brugge as he continues to struggle at Paris Saint-Germain.

The Dutch midfielder opted to leave Liverpool over the summer, joining Ligue 1 giants PSG on a free transfer.

However, things have not gone exactly according to plan for the 30-year-old, who signed a three-year contract at the Parc des Princes.

Wijnaldum had started all four of PSG's league games before being benched against Clermont Foot last weekend.

He also started against Club Brugge in the opening Champions League match, but found himself hooked at half-time after an underwhelming 45 minutes.

Gini Wijnaldum has struggled since joining PSG from Liverpool ( Image:

Getty Images)

While discussing his performance in Belgium, French outlet L'Equipe did not hold back with their criticism.

Having given Wijnaldum a 3/10 for his performance, they described him as average 'at best' with the ball, and said he is facing 'great difficulty' in defensive duels, where many were expecting him to thrive.

As per Sport Witness, L'Equipe wrote in Thursday's publication: "Orphan of Marco Verratti, master in the field, the Parisian midfield have never known how to get rid of the Belgian pressing.

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"Georginio Wijnaldum, still very disappointing last night, illustrates this deficiency."

Wednesday's draw was one of the first times Mauricio Pochettino has fielded his world-class attacking trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe together.

And the world-class strike force faltered against the Belgian's seemingly sub-par back line.

Paris Saint-Germain's Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum kicks the ball during the UEFA Champions League Group A football match Club Brugge against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Jan Breydel Stadium in Bruges, on September 15, 2021. (Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP) (Photo by JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images) ( Image:

Getty Images))

Pochettino admitted that he was all too aware of the underwhelming performance to kick things off in the group stage, but vowed that his side would improve over time.

"We know we have to improve. That's not the problem for me," said the Argentine.

"I'm happy with the defensive effort of the attackers. We have to be stronger in other areas of the game.

"[We] need to compete, to know each other, to understand each other, to play together to succeed with all three but that was not the problem.

"We weren't strong enough in a Champions League match. We are not happy with the result and the performance, we know we have to do better.

"We have a magnificent group of players, we now have to find a defensive and offensive organisation. We need time."