PSG vs Man City | Match Preview, Team News, Best bets

PSG host Man City at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday night on matchday two of the UEFA Champions League. These sides met in last season’s semi-final as City won both legs whilst they also faced off in the 2015-16 season. Both sides are looking to win their first-ever Champions League crown as these coaches continue a rivalry that began as players at Barcelona and Espanyol.

PSG Form

PSG have won all eight of their Ligue 1 matches this season, scoring 22 goals and conceding seven. Their first group stage match saw a very poor performance to draw 1-1 away at Club Brugge as they were outshot 16-9 with the Belgians even producing more dribbles than the Parisians despite the latter’s M-N-M front three.

Pochettino’s team has bounced back with three league wins in a row but the performances were not particularly convincing. A 93rd-minute goal by Mauro Icardi was needed to beat Lyon 2-1 before a 2-1 win at Metz thanks to a 95th minute Achraf Hakimi winner. Their last match brought a 2-0 win against Montpellier as Lionel Messi was given a precautionary rest. Idrissa Gueye and Julian Draxler scored the goals.

PSG Team News

PSG hopes to have Marco Verratti back in the squad after an injury but he looks highly unlikely to start. Messi missed the weekend match with a bruise on the knee but is expected to be fit to start this match with Angel Di Maria possibly the man to lose out.

Sergio Ramos is still waiting for his debut as he slowly comes back from injury. Gini Wijnaldum is pushing to start in the midfield three after an outing as a substitute this weekend. Exciting left-back Nuno Mendes is fighting with Abdou Diallo for a spot in the XI.

PSG Motivation

PSG will be hugely motivated to beat Man City but there isn’t all that much riding on the match as it looks almost certain that both sides will qualify from the group regardless – so a top spot is a prize.

With a Messi, Mbappe, and Neymar front three, PSG has no choice but to play with a broken team as the trio stays high and the midfield does all the defensive work for them. They may have to outscore City to win as the backline is so exposed.

Man City Form

City bounced back from losing at Spurs in their first league match to thrash Norwich and Arsenal both 5-0 and win 1-0 at Leicester. City then thumped RB Leipzig 6-3 having scored twice after a red card at 4-3. A shock 0-0 draw in the league at home to Southampton came next with just 1.2 xG produced.

City then thrashed Wycombe 6-1 in the Carabao Cup before an imperious performance to beat Chelsea 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. They allowed The Blues just 0.2 xG in a top pressing and defensive performance whilst monopolizing the ball.

Man City Team News

Ilkay Gundogan and Oleksandr Zinchenko both missed the last match so Rodri will play in the holding role and Joao Cancelo at left-back if neither recovers in time.

The attack is the biggest question mark as Raheem Sterling has struggled for form and both Ferran Torres and Riyad Mahrez have been benched of late. Phil Foden could continue as false nine with Gabriel Jesus as a hard-working, high pressing right-winger. Bernardo Silva was unplayable in the last match and is a certain starter in the midfield three.

Man City Motivation

City is four matches unbeaten against PSG and epitomizes teamwork over individuals, the opposite of PSG in many ways. Pep Guardiola will want to win this match but a draw is a decent result too.

If Guardiola’s side pressed as they did on Saturday, they can win this match in Paris. They won’t risk defeat to do it though.

Key Stats

PSG have lost 4 of their last 7 home CL matches

PSG have scored in 45 of their last 48 UCL matches

Mbappe has scored 8 goals in his last 12 UCL matches

City have scored 24 goals in their last 7 matches

Man City have won 8 of their last 11 away CL matches

City have won their last 3 matches against PSG

Verdict

This should be an intriguing match to watch without the tension of it being a knockout tie. City is the better team and has all the tools to exploit PSG’s weaknesses. Both teams are likely to score but an away win could be an excellent bet too.