Paris Saint-Germain - Stade Brestois 29 Kick-off: 21:00 CET (2000 GMT)

Pochettino was appointed as Thomas Tuchel's successor in the PSG dugout last Saturday and was without some eight first-team players, including Neymar, Mauro Icardi and Alessandro Florenzi, for his maiden game in charge.

Perhaps surprisingly for a coach who guided Tottenham Hotspur to the 2019 UEFA Champions League final using a 4-2-3-1 system, PSG lined up in their more familiar 4-3-3 formation against ASSE on Wednesday, settling for a 1-1 draw with Moise Kean cancelling out Romain Hamouma's early opener.

Still chasing

The result left the capital club in second, three points off leaders Olympique Lyonnais, and although Pochettino would have preferred a maximum haul at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, the Argentine drew some positives from the performance.

Watch: Highlights of PSG's 1-1 draw with Saint-Etienne

"We dominated the second half, had possession and tried to put certain concepts into practice," he said. "I'm pretty happy with the players, who tried a lot and showed a great mindset, a good attitude and put in the effort. Of course, they have to adapt, we have to improve in many situations with the ball and in the development of actions.

"Considering the injuries, this was the most balanced team to line up with. I wanted Marco Verratti to organise the game, being free on the whole pitch to connect well with the team."

Rotation?

Verratti is likely to have Julian Draxler and Ander Herrera for company in midfield, with Rafinha and Leandro Paredes also on that lengthy list of PSG absentees. Pochettino will have to wait for the chance to properly assess the full strength of his new squad, but 18-year-old Timothée Pembélé may already have done enough after impressing off the bench against ASSE.

Brest begin the day 10 points back in 10th having beaten OGC Nice 2-0 on Wednesday thanks to goals from Steve Mounié and Franck Honorat.

Defying expectations this season is one thing, but les Pirates have never beaten Paris and you have to go back to April 2011 to find the last share of the spoils between the teams, when a late Ahmed Kantari own goal spared PSG's blushes in a 2-2 draw at the Stade Francis-Le Blé.

Watch: Highlights of Brest's 2-0 win over Nice

PSG then and now are significantly different animals - as good as Nené and Guillaume Hoarau were - and Brest coach Olivier Dall'Oglio is not getting carried away ahead of his side's meeting with the champions.

'Simply need a cushion'

"If we avoid performances like our recent defeat to Lens then we can perhaps stay in the top half of the table," he said after the Nice game. "But I repeat: our objective is simply to have a cushion on the clubs below us in the table."

Denys Bain and Jérémy Le Douaron remain absent due to knee and heel injuries respectively, while club captain Jean-Kévin Duverne may have to settle for a place on the bench despite being fit after the assured performances of centre-backs Brendan Chardonnet and Christophe Hérelle in midweek.

Possible teams

PSG: Navas; Pembélé, Kehrer, Marquinhos, Bakker; Draxler, Verratti, Herrera; Sarabia,Kean, Mbappé

Brest: Larsonneur; Pierre-Gabriel, Chardonnet, Hérelle, Perraud; Honorat, Belkebla, Lasne, Faivre; Mounié, Cardona