‘It’s a question of mentality’ – Bradley Barcola on being Ligue 1’s top scorer | OneFootball

There was a very obvious void left by the departure of Kylian Mbappé (25) from Paris Saint-Germain over the summer, but for now, it appears to have been filled by Bradley Barcola (22) who has taken up the goalscoring mantle from his fellow countryman.

The young Frenchman has scored eight goals in ten Ligue 1 games for PSG this season already double the total he registered across the entire 2023/24 campaign. It has left Barcola as the current top scorer in the French league beating Jonathan David (24) and Mason Greenwood (23) who both have scored seven so far this season.

In an interview with Le Parisien, Barcolas was questioned on what the difference has been between this campaign and the last, and why he has become such an effective presence in front of goal. Barcola explained, “[Last season] I was more in the role of a hard-hitting winger, I didn’t have that killer side. [Luis Enrique] was the first to criticise me for it. He always told  me what I was doing was very good, but he reminded me that first and foremost a striker and what you ask of a striker is to score.”

Bradley Barcola: ‘Last year… I really didn’t have many shots.’

The former Olympique Lyonnais attacker continued, “At the start of the season, I really got it into my head that I had to be a goal scorer, more decisive. It’s mostly a question of mentality. It requires being more focused, having this desire to score and make others score.” Barcola also added that he was shooting more than last season, “Last year I was shown a statistic, I really didn’t have many shots. I worked a lot on finishing. I told myself as soon as I had the ball to shoot, I had to take responsibility. And that’s what I’m doing.”

GFFN | Nick Hartland