Christophe Galtier on Hugo Ekitike’s lack of playing time: “There’s no issue.”

At his press conference this afternoon ahead of Paris Saint-Germain’s trip to Angers tomorrow, Christophe Galtier was notably asked about the reasons behind forward Hugo Ekitike’s lack of playing time of late, with the 20-year-old remaining on the bench for the last two games.

Ekitike’s loan move from Reims is set to be made permanent at the end of the season, but reports indicate that the league leaders already intend to transfer list him. The French youth international has yet to replicate the form he showed in his breakout season with the Champagne club, that initially attracted interest from Newcastle. In 27 appearances for the Parisians, the striker has found the net four times.

Speaking today, Galtier pointed out that the Frenchman was competing for playing time with none other than Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi, and that there was no underlying issue behind the forward’s reduced playing time:

“There’s no issue. He’s working hard, even harder than some of the other players, despite not having any game time. The team is weakened right now; there is a need to keep a sort of balance, and he faces a lot of competition, in terms of competing with Leo and Kylian. We will see in the coming games. But there are no issues between Hugo and I. Obviously he’s not happy about the situation, but he is working hard in training.”