PSG on cusp of another title, but it will be bittersweet for Pochettino

A point will be enough. Paris Saint-Germain need only draw on Saturday at home to Lens to resume what the club’s owners, supporters and their array of superstars regard as normal service: the lifting of the Ligue 1 title.

Assuming they oblige a Parc des Princes crowd of loyal devotees mixed in with the restless, dissatisfied fans who have in the last month chanted complaints about the running of the club, PSG will confirm the title with four matches to spare.

They will hold a lead of at least 16 points over Olympique Marseille, their traditional rivals but, in the 11 years since PSG came under the generous patronage of their Qatari owners, usually a very distant challenger. Barring an implausible series of slip-ups, the 2021/22 French league will have been won by the same dominant club that has claimed seven of the last nine.

Don’t expect the applause to last too long. By the head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s own admission, this is a PSG season defined by a standout “disappointment”, the failure to go beyond the last 16 of the Champions League, and an extraordinary stumble at that hurdle: They were 2-0 up in their tie against Real Madrid with half-an-hour of the 180 minutes remaining; they were knocked out by a blitzed hat-trick from Karim Benzema.

Against that backdrop, Pochettino’s first league title as a head coach cannot help but feel bittersweet. He was hired in January 2021 with a reputation as a bright, communicative, up-and-coming coach whose achievements with Tottenham Hotspur were supplemented with a playing past as a PSG captain.

Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates after scoring in the 3-1 comeback win over of PSG in the Champions League last-16 second leg on March 9, 2022. EPA

Then, his main obvious