So far, the 20th day of Ligue 1 has been very entertaining. Between the unexpected comeback of Paris FC on its lawn against OM (2-2), Lorient which followed with a success against Nantes (2-1) and the rout of Rennes in Monaco (4-0), many lessons can already be learned. For PSG, one result is particularly important to take into account before the trip to Strasbourg this Sunday: the victory of RC Lens on Friday against Le Havre (1-0). Beaten soundly last week in Marseille (3-1), the Artésiens returned to success and thus regained first place in the ranking.
Enough to put pressure on Paris before the shock this Sunday. Exhausted, Luis Enrique’s men also came out of a disappointing draw at home against Newcastle in the Champions League. A result which earned them their place in the top 8 of the competition and which forced them to compete in the play-offs of the competition during a double confrontation against AS Monaco in February. In the meantime, Paris must collect points in Ligue 1 and regain its leadership throne this Sunday.
Safonov, Zabarnyi and Mayulu start for Paris
To do this, PSG will present themselves at Meinau with an almost typical team despite the absences of Fabian Ruiz and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. While Matvey Safonov is expected to continue in goal, Luis Enrique is expected to field a defense consisting of Nuno Mendes, Illia Zabarnyi, Willian Pacho and Achraf Hakimi. In midfield, Warren Zaire-Emery should take place alongside Vitinha and Senny Mayulu. With the absence of Kvara, Luis Enrique will start on an attack formed by Désiré Doué, Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola.
As for Strasbourg, Gary O’Neil should line up a team in line with his first outings. Mike Penders will keep the Alsatian goals. In front of him, a defense made up of Ben Chilwell, Andrew Omobamidele, Mamadou Sarr, close to returning to Chelsea, and Guela Doué should take their place. In midfield, a double pivot Doukouré-El Mourabet will be aligned in support of Julio Enciso, found since the arrival of O’Neil. On the wings, Diego Moreira and Martial Godo will try to bring danger into the area to support Joaquin Panichelli.
