When Hugo Ekitike turned down Newcastle United in favour of Paris Saint-Germain over the summer, he would have known that first-team opportunities would not come around all-too frequently at the Ligue 1 champions.
But even he cannot have imagined that, three months since his £30 million move from Stade de Reims, he’d still be awaiting his first start under Christophe Galtier. Ekitike’s 11-minute cameo during Tuesday’s 7-2 thrashing of Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League was just his ninth appearance.
Every single one of those has come from the bench.
“When you have the attacking trio that we have at PSG, when you play in place of one of the three, there is a comparison,” Galtier tells L’Equipe, highlighting the difficulty Ekitike faces when fighting three of the 21st century’s finest forwards – Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe – for a place a star-studded frontline.
“He was rightly disappointed a few times not to start certain matches. He was disappointed. I gave him the reasons for my choices. Obviously, he is a talented player, who must compensate for his lack of playing time in training.
“We also asked that he works more, that he puts in more intensity. So that he can be more striking when he plays.”
Hugo Ekitike chose PSG over Newcastle United
Ekitike missed his chance – quite literally – in midweek. He fired straight at the Maccabi goalkeeper when presented with a glorious opportunity to open his PSG account. It was the sort of chance the France U20 international often gobbled up at Reims.
Galtier blames that rustiness in front of goal on a lack of confidence; one probably brought about by his lack of regular minutes.
“There was a loss of confidence on Hugo’s part because he wasn’t playing a lot,” the former Lille boss adds. “May he continue to work hard.”
Newcastle agreed a fee with Reims for 20-year-old Ekitike at the start of the summer. But one of the club’s top post-takeover targets could not turn down the opportunity to hone his considerable talents alongside Messi, Mbappe and co at a genuine Champions Leauge contender.
“I’m not setting aside everything Newcastle did for me,” Ekitike tells Le10 Sport . “If I had to go abroad, I would have gone there. But when PSG wants you and you’re French, you can’t refuse.”
With the futures of Messi and Mbappe uncertain, and with Neymar turning 31 in February, Ekitike’s time will come around eventually. For now, the youngster has no choice but to bide his time and make those odd cameo appearances count.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
