Four games, no goals: How do PSG start getting the best out of misfiring Kylian Mbappe?

Mbappe's slight slump could just be the side effect of an oddly assembled squad. Last summer, the Parisians signed four starting-calibre attacking players — after letting just two leave. It made little sense, especially given their manager is a staunch front-three loyalist.

Still, there was reason to believe that a four-forward system could work out. Luis Enrique deployed such a shape in a 4-0 win over Marseille, with Bradley Barcola operating on the left, Mbappe and Randal Kolo Muani in central roles, and Ousmane Dembele on the right. The result was an emphatic win, albeit one in which Mbappe hobbled off with an ankle injury.

The manager stuck with the system after that — without much success. PSG settled for a frustrating 0-0 draw with Clermont Foot, tallying 21 shots but creating very few clear chances.

And then came Newcastle. In what can only be described as an immense tactical blunder, Luis Enrique went to St. James' Park, and decided to enter a cauldron of riled-up Geordies with four strikers and two slight midfielders who had a combined 10 Champions League starts between them. PSG, perhaps predictably, were battered 4-1 - their knockout stage qualification becoming slightly trickier as a result.

Notably, Mbappe didn't score in any of the three fixtures. And although PSG switched back to a 4-3-3 — comfortably beating Rennes in the process — Mbappe failed to score once more.

So, how does this all get worked out? Even though Mbappe didn't find the net against Rennes, he did everything else well. And surely it's that sort of setup that seems to suit the rest of the Parisians' squad.

Mbappe has always functioned effectively in a front three for PSG. Although there have been some modifications — Christophe Galtier, for example, preferred to play with three defenders — this is a footballer who thrives when asked to come off the left and function as an inside forward. Give him a central presence and another winger, and Mbappe can be one of the best in the world.

The good news for the Parisians is that they have the kind of attacking quality and depth to make such a thing happen. For the first few games of the season, it was all going swimmingly. New signing Marco Asensio, unexpectedly, functioned as a No.9, with Dembele and Mbappe on either wing. The result was a return to the kind of form that has Mbappe in Ballon d'Or conversations. He scored five in his first three games, and three in two after that. Asensio, a notoriously inconsistent goal-scorer, was finding form. And even though Dembele continued his errant ways in front of goal, the winger showed promise.

This appears to be the default system for the manager. After all, it had Mbappe scoring and the Parisians picking up points. However, a foot injury Asensio sustained on Spain duty forced the manager to contemplate other options.

So, how else to piece together a 4-3-3 with Asensio out? The one that might make the most sense for their star is a front three with Mbappe on the left, Kolo Muani through the middle, and Dembele on the right.

This system might just be one of appeasement. Mbappe has been vocal about his desire to play with Kolo Muani for some time now, having developed a solid partnership with the former Frankfurt man for France.

The two seem to complement each other well. Kolo Muani can hold down a central role, but is smart enough to make runs and open spaces for Mbappe to operate. And it might just help the struggling Dembele, too — who could thrive with a mobile centre-forward to feed him.

It is a connection that hasn't quite come off yet at club level. Mbappe and Kolo Muani haven't combined for a goal at the time of writing. But the familiarity is certainly there.

And then, there's the choice that is less likely to keep Mbappe happy. Goncalo Ramos was a confusing signing this summer. If the plan was always to bring in Kolo Muani, a versatile attacking player who figured to be the regular No.9, why would the Parisians spend big on a more traditional centre-forward?

Ramos has failed to get going, with just two goals in seven appearances for the Parisians. But he could still be a solid option. Ramos has played as part of a fluid 4-3-3 for Portugal during this international break, starting on the right but drifting into more central areas on the break. He did much of the same at the World Cup, famously replacing Ronaldo outright and scoring a hat-trick to lift the Seleccao to an emphatic win over Switzerland.

If Luis Enrique wants to replicate the kind of switching, meandering, exciting attacking play that made his side so effective against Rennes, Marseille and Lyon — when Asensio was in the side — Ramos could be a more-than-agreeable option. He won't wander into wide areas like Kolo Muani, or drop deep like Asensio. But Ramos' threat in the middle means opposing defences will have to contend with another weapon, and potentially leave space for Mbappe to operate.

And then, the final option: yield to everything Mbappe wants. The striker's de facto control of PSG is tiring at this point. There are, indeed, very few players in footballing history who have been able to exercise such power over a team, club and brand like Mbappe. And one of his gripes for over a year has been his desire to play alongside a central striker — effectively functioning as part of a front two. He famously pushed that notion on Instagram, with a passive aggressive post suggesting that he needed to be part of a "pivot gang" to reach his full potential.

So far, PSG have been reluctant to hand him that opportunity. Although Ramos and Kolo Muani are centre-forwards, Luis Enrique has, thus far, insisted on playing a front three. Perhaps there is the option is to abandon that, switch to a front two, and let Mbappe have his way.

There's certainly evidence to suggest that it could work, too. Mbappe was at his brilliant best in the World Cup final when deployed alongside Kolo Muani, a late tactical shift from Didier Deschamps that got Mbappe into all of the crucial positions that allowed him to bag a heroic hat-trick in the biggest game of his life. And if the Parisians want their main man to stay, handing him the keys in the final third certainly wouldn't hurt.

The rest of PSG's squad really isn't suited to it, though. They don't have a No.10 in the mould of Antoine Griezmann, nor the midfield personnel to offer a solid base. But perhaps Mbappe can simply score enough to render those concerns irrelevant.

This wouldn't really be a debate had Asensio stayed fit. If the Spaniard was still healthy, Mbappe could well have continued his electric form, and found the net at a frightening rate.

Instead, though, things look murkier. There is no real timeline for Asensio's return, while a series of imperfect configurations have left their star man without a goal in four games.

So, the manager is left with a tricky choice. As Mbappe showed with a brace for France against the Netherlands, a front two, with a No.10 behind him, is undoubtedly the best system for him. Someday, some club side will likely hand that to him (are you listening, Real Madrid?).

But for now, Luis Enrique is perhaps best off going with the all-French trio, trusting that Mbappe's desired signing Kolo Muani and a Dembele that will hopefully find form, is enough to get the winger scoring. Their recent win at Rennes showed that it is the best way for the team to pick up three points. And Mbappe himself is simply too good to not find a rhythm in front of goal. The misses might add up, but he will inevitably start to find the net again — as long as Luis Enrique gets his system right.