Khvicha Kvaratskhelia goes into tonight's Champions League clash with Barcelona with something to prove. Paris Saint-Germain have dropped him from the starting line-up since the start of the season, and the game now feels like a test of whether he can force his way back into the picture.
That is why his name is being searched now: this is the kind of European night that can reset a season. Kvaratskhelia was hailed last year as one of the key architects of Paris Saint-Germain's second Champions League title, but this campaign has opened with a dip in form and a reduced role that has made every appearance feel heavier.
The discussion around him sharpened on Monday evening on L'After Foot on RMC, where François Clerc said that if Kvara starts, he will play a big game. That backing came with a warning, though: Clerc said his behaviour suggests a muddled head, a sense that he is not fully present, even if he has produced good matches in Ligue 1. Daniel Riolo pushed the point further, saying that if Kvaratskhelia plays against Barcelona and is again good in the Champions League, then the message after a while should be to stop excusing it, and that he looks as if he is choosing his matches.
The friction is obvious. In the Champions League, he still carries the reputation of a standout. In the French league, several voices have described him as average and inconsistent. Florent Gautreau thinks Luis Enrique may keep him on the bench to keep piling on the pressure, and said Kvaratskhelia has not recovered the level or the attitude that are being asked of him. Walid Acherchour added that this year he did not take part in the World Cup and had an ideal preparation, yet against Strasbourg he was no longer even able to try a dribble in a one-on-one situation. The contrast between that and the player who arrived with huge expectations is what makes the drop hard to ignore.
There is also a second layer to the slump. Gautreau said Kvaratskhelia may have started the season seeing himself as a Ballon d'Or candidate, only to watch the loudest nomination campaigns move toward Mbappé, Yamal and Dembélé. That, Gautreau said, may have left him frustrated, and frustration may have dragged his level down just when he was expecting a strong start after missing the World Cup. Tonight will not settle the debate on its own, but it will show whether Luis Enrique trusts him from the start and whether Kvaratskhelia can turn a difficult opening into the kind of night that changes the conversation again.
