Mauricio Pochettino was in a philosophical mood after Paris Saint-Germain suffered a major blow in the Ligue 1 title race on Sunday, as he admitted it's been "a season of ups and downs".
PSG were held to a 1-1 draw by Rennes in their latest Ligue 1 outing and now sit three points behind leaders Lille, who beat Lens 3-0 on Saturday, with just two games left to play.
Lille are only four points away from wrapping up their first domestic crown since 2010-11 with the Parisians set to be denied a fourth successive title, and Pochettino has promised that changes will be made at Parc des Princes in the summer after a turbulent campaign.
What's been said?
"It's a season with many ups and downs. We will have to use it for the future," the PSG boss said at his post-match press conference. "Clearly, there will be decisions to be made. to improve the team for next season."
Asked to assess his team's performance at Rennes, Pochettino added: "In football, anything can happen. We are of course disappointed, but we have to give credit to Rennes, which is a very good team and had a really good match.
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"It is not a problem of quality or attitude. We were not better than Rennes during the 90 minutes and we did not, therefore, deserve the victory."
Pochettino on Mbappe's absence
Pochettino delivered the Trophee Des Champions after replacing Thomas Tuchel in the PSG hot seat in January, and he also had his sights set on a Ligue 1 and Champions League double heading into the business end of the season.
However, the French champions fell short in Europe after losing 4-1 on aggregate to Manchester City in the semi-finals, with Kylian Mbappe unable to feature in either leg due to a calf injury.
The Frenchman was also missing against Rennes, but Pochettino has insisted that PSG cannot use his absence as an excuse for their poor form.
"We all know the importance of Kylian, but we must not think that it was an absence that made the difference," he said. "Regarding the elimination, in a club like ours, it should not have an influence."
What's next?
PSG will now look ahead to a Coupe de France semi-final clash against Montpellier on Wednesday, which comes four days before they welcome Reims to Parc des Princes in Ligue 1.
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