Paris Saint-Germain host a struggling Strasbourg side on Wednesday evening in a meeting between two clubs at either end of the Ligue 1 table.
The reigning champions cantered into the winter break on the back of seven consecutive wins across all competitions. PSG have collected 41 Ligue 1 points from the first 45 available this season.
Strasbourg, by stark comparison, have claimed just one win all season – the fewest of any club in France’s top flight. Julien Stephan’s side has racked up a league-high eight draws and is just two points from safety in a congested bottom slice of the table.
Here’s everything you need to know about the champions’ resumption of Ligue 1.
PSG vs Strasbourg H2H Results (Last Five Games)
Current Form (Last Five Games)
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PSG team news
Incredibly, less than 72 hours after scoring a hat-trick yet still losing the World Cup final, Kylian Mbappe strolled into a PSG training session. Achraf Hakimi played in the third-place playoff the day before but joined Neymar and Marquinhos, whose Brazil bowed out in the quarter-finals, at PSG’s training ground as well. How many will start as soon as Wednesday remains to be seen.
Lionel Messi is unlikely to feature while he celebrates his first World Cup and Argentina’s first in his lifetime. The Portuguese pairing of Danilo Pereira (ribs) and Nuno Mendes (thigh) picked up injuries while they were in Qatar.
Presnel Kimpembe missed the tournament entirely with an Achilles injury but has since returned to training.
PSG Starting 11 (4-3-3):Â Donnarumma; Mukiele, Ramos, Marquinhos, Bernat; Fabian, Verratti, Vitinha; Sarabia, Ekitike, Neymar.
Bench:Â Rico, Bitshiabu, Sanches, Gharbi, Hakimi, Mbappe, Kimpembe, Danilo, Housni.
Strasbourg team news
The PSG loanee Colin Dagba is expected to miss out on a reunion with his parent club while he nurses a calf problem. Nordine Kandil’s wait for a maiden start of the season may drag on as he is carrying a foot injury.
Ibrahima Sissoko underwent ankle surgery at the end of October but returned for his side’s friendly against Karlsruher – which was split into three 45-minute thirds – earlier this month.
Strasbourg Starting 11 (4-3-1-2):Â Sels; Doukoure, Nyamsi, Perrin, Fila; Diarra, Prcic, Bellegarde; Thomasson; Ajorque, Diallo.
Bench:Â Kawashima, Gameiro, Mothiba, Lienard, Aholou, Sissoko, Pierre-Gabriel, Risser, Djiku.
Stephan’s greatest managerial triumph came at PSG’s expense back in 2019, steering Rennes to the Coupe de France via a penalty shootout. However, since taking over Strasbourg, Stephan’s side has conceded ten goals in three meetings with the capital giants.
PSG had 11 players at the World Cup – compared to Strasbourg’s two – but Christophe Galtier has been able to swiftly welcome back most of his internationals. The talent laced throughout PSG’s squad should be enough to rack up some more goals against a side that has never recorded a competitive victory away to France’s perennial champions.
Prediction: PSG 3-1 Strasbourg
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