By Asif Burhan,Contributor,Glenn Gervot
Copyright forbes
PARIS, FRANCE – AUGUST 30 : Jackie Groenen #14 of Paris Saint-Germain FC is all smiles after another goal for her team during a Pre-Season Friendly match between AJAX Women and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) Women on August 30, 2025 in PSG Campus, France. (Photo by Glenn Gervot – PSG / PSG via Getty Images)
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In her fourth season at Paris Saint-Germain, Jackie Groenen is still happy to play in the French capital as the club integrate a swathe of new players into the team.
Competing in the new 18-team League Phase of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, PSG face the tough prospect of taking points from matches against VfL Wolfsburg, Real Madrid, Manchester United and FC Bayern in their opening four games.
Last season, PSG failed to even make the group stage, going out in qualifying to Juventus. Groenen missed the tie and revealed it was a big loss to the club. “We missed out on the boat a little bit last season. It was a year without a lot of Champions League games so we are very excited to be back into the mix.”
The perennial bridesmaids of the French women’s game, Paris Saint-Germain has finished as runners-up in seven of the past eight seasons to Olympique Lyonnais (now OL Lyonnes). Since Groenen joined them in 2022, they have also finished as runners-up in two Coupe de France finals and two Trophée des Championnes finals.
TOPSHOT – Paris Saint Germain’s players lift the trophy after winning the Women’s French Cup (Coupe de France) final football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and FC Fleury 91 at the Mosson Stadium in Montpellier, southern France, on May 4, 2024. (Photo by Sylvain THOMAS / AFP) (Photo by SYLVAIN THOMAS/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
The 2024 French Cup is the only trophy Groenen has won in her time in the French captial. When I asked her, she would not be drawn on whether this was good enough for a club of PSG’s wealth. “I think we’re in a different stage now than when I signed. For me, I’ve learned a lot here. I’ve been really happy and I’ve been really enjoying my football. If it’s enough? The club can decide that and you can decide that, but for me I’m doing really well.”
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Last summer, Groenen signed a new contract keeping her in Paris until 2027. For now, the 30-year-old is satisfied nurturing a new team through a transitional phase in their development. “I think that’s something we’ve been working on this year, to have the patience to see what we can build, the patience to see how far this team can get. We’re making steps. We are going game to game, seeing how we can do and how we can stand up against these strong teams.”
“With that said, we are also a team that’s competed in the Champions League in the years before at a high stage. We know what’s expected of us and we know where we want to go, so now it’s up to us to bring that level every single time that we play a big team and we hope he can.”
The scorer of the winning goal in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Final, Olga Carmona, is one of several new faces in the French captial ths season after the departure of all-time top goalscorer Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Korbin Shrader (née Albert) to Lyon and captain Grace Geyoro to London City Lionesses for a world record transfer fee.
Groenen said “I’m very excited for Olga to come in. She’s been injured at the beginning of the season but she’s coming in from this week on. We have some young players that have come up, that are 17, 18 years old that are already so good.”
“We have so many good new signings, Rasheedat Ajibade, who is very fast on the wing and giving us extra options up front. We have some exciting people that came in. It feels like quite a new team, we’ve restructured a lot so it needs some time. That’s the patience that we have to have. It’s very exciting. It’s a very exciting team to be in.”
Lyonnes’ Haitian midfielder Melchie Dumornay (L) fights for the ball with Paris-Saint-Germain’s Dutch midfielder Jackie Groenen during the French Premiere Ligue football match between OL Lyonnes (OL) and Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG) at the Groupama Stadium in Decines-Charpieu, central-eastern France on September 27, 2025. (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD / AFP) (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images)
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PSG are coming off the back of a humiliating 6-1 defeat to an OL Lyonnes side containing seven of their former players. Groenen conceded “We had a tough loss, that’s also part of the game. That’s also part of the phase that we are in right now. What I said before about having the patience to find the right games to perform is something that we will have to do this season and that’s not a problem, that’s ok.”
After the PSG women’s team became the first representing Paris to reach a Champions League final in 2015, it was the men’s team who ended the club’s curse in the competition by becoming European champions this summer. Groenen was with the Dutch international squad and therefore not in the stadium in Munich to witness the club making history but admits it has become an inspiration for the women’s team to match their genesis from a side relying on big-name signings to one which succeeded through teamwork.
She told me “I watched it in my room with the national team. The vibes in the club are good. Obviously the men’s team have been doing really, really well. They are very impressive to us. They kind of also changed thir way of playing. The team is such a unit that works together well, they are an inspiration for us and they are an inspiration for what we want to do as well.”
In November, Groenen will once more have to face her old club when Paris Saint-Germain travel to play Manchester United. Two seasons ago, she was part of the PSG team which eliminated the English side in the qualifying stages of the competition. This year however, the match will be played at Manchester United’s Theatre of Dreams – Old Trafford. It will be the first-ever Women’s Champions League game played at the iconic stadium.
Groenen told me she cannot wait for the match. “I’m very excited to go back to Manchester. It always felt like a second home for me. I’m very excited to play against a team that’s very close to my heart. I will always be excited playing Manchester United. It’s always a special game, it’s always a game that gives you a bit extra for me.”
LEIGH, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 10: Jackie Groenen of PSG hugs Leah Galton of Manchester United at the end of the UEFA Women’s Champions League Qualifying Second Round match between Manchester United Women and Paris Saint-Germain Feminines at Leigh Sports Village on October 10, 2023 in Leigh, England. (Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Manchester United via Getty Images
“That will always be a special moment and the fact that we play at Old Trafford only makes it better. My family has already booked a hotel close to where I used to live so they can have a bit of the experience that we had back then. It’s big for us. It’s always nice to go back and I’m excited to see the fans and I’m excited to see some of my people.”
Tonight, she will be watching when her two old clubs Manchester United and Chelsea go head-to-head in the Women’s Super League. When pressed who she would be supporting, Groenen told me “that’s hard to say, but I will always support Man United. I will never not support Man United.”
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