The scene seems innocuous. On Wednesday, Sakina Karchaoui poses among her teammates with the December Player of the Month trophy in her hands. The left side shows his satisfaction. But there is another smile in this photo: that of Kheira Hamraoui, who reappears for the first time since the end of October in a snapshot posted by PSG. Since the aggression suffered on November 4 by the 32-year-old player, she had voluntarily disappeared from social networks (hers and those of her club) in order to protect herself mentally.
This return to “public” life portends another: in all likelihood, Hamraoui will play this Sunday in Saint-Étienne in the league for his first minutes of play since October 31. “I’m talking about it for the last time, smiled this Friday morning Didier Ollé-Nicolle, Parisian coach. There is no jargon. I had already said it last week: Kheira and Aminata (Diallo) should have gone to Dijon (Editor’s note: the match has been postponed). They will be in the group for Saint-Étienne and maybe even on the pitch depending on the last two training sessions”.
The meeting between the champions of France and the Greens, in the fight for maintenance, could therefore take a symbolic turn. Beyond the assault, violent and traumatic, the police investigation, still ongoing, has caused immense disruption in the Parisian locker room. Until questioning the future of the midfielder in Paris. But time seems to have its effect. Although Kheira Hamraoui’s situation within the group is not ideal, she has rediscovered the pleasure of collective training, also reassured by the attitude of her teammates on a daily basis.
PSG had not planned its schedule: after Saint-Étienne in the league, fate decided a huge shock against Lyon in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France on January 29. And after the rouste received in the Rhône (6-1) in November a few days after the aggression of Kheira Hamraoui, all the players and the staff approach this revenge with rage in their stomachs. “Experience will be an important element,” says Didier Ollé-Nicolle. That of the 2021 European champion with FC Barcelona in the first place.
“We have to work on ourselves to train and work together. And if we get there, it’s to play together. The idea is to set up the most efficient team while ignoring the rest, ”concludes the Parisian coach. A strategy that includes Kheira Hamraoui for the next meetings and the next few months. The next group photo may be of a success against Lyon with a new smile from Kheira.