Gianluigi Donnarumma denies having a troubled relationship with Keylor Navas. The two Paris Saint-Germain goalkeepers are competing this season for a place under the bar. Last month wrote L’Equipe that the relationship between the two goalkeepers contributes to an unpleasant atmosphere in the PSG dressing room, but according to the Italian, that is not true.
Donnarumma came over from AC Milan on a free transfer in the summer of 2021. He hoped to become the new first goalkeeper, but coach Mauricio Pochettino regularly rotates. Donnarumma has played twelve official games so far this season and Navas fifteen. “I’m not worried. I have an excellent relationship with Keylor. Competition is part of it and Keylor is a friend of mine,” emphasizes Donnarumma in an interview with France TV. “There are no problems, although sometimes we try to come up with stories. We have a strong team and that includes competition.”
Tensions are rising at Paris Saint-Germain: two camps are forming
L’Équipe wrote last month that groups have formed in the PSG dressing room.
The competition between the two keepers is healthy, says Donnarumma. “We are both calm personalities. We both do our best and then the trainer makes his decision. We are at his disposal and we both want to give the maximum.” However, the 22-year-old goalkeeper, who along with Édouard Mendy and Manuel Neuer has a chance to be crowned The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper this month, admits that he “experiences more pressure” in Paris than in Milan. “I’m at a club that wants to win everything there is to win. This is just my beginning here. My ambitions have not changed: I want to win, win, win.”
Last month, trainer Pochettino already spoke out about the competition under the bar. “After five months of cooperation with each other, the situation is clear,” he said. “I believe competition can be healthy. There is real competition and the atmosphere in training is good,” the coach assured at a press conference. “Everyone benefits from the fight. Our goalkeepers deserve a compliment because they know what is being asked of them and they can only get better.”
L’Equipe wrote last month that groups have arisen in the PSG dressing room, with Lionel Messi and Neymar on the one hand and the French-speaking players including Achraf Hakimi on the other. The relationship between Donnarumma and Navas was described as problematic. After the home game against OGC Nice (0-0) on December 1, there would have been a conflict. “You see, only the best goalkeepers wear these gloves,” Navas is said to have told Nice goalkeeper Marcin Bulka under the watchful eye of Donnarumma. Navas and Bulka have the same sponsor.