Paris Saint-Germain and RC Lens meet in a crunch Ligue 1 Uber Eats title showdown on Saturday. The capital club have stumbled in recent weeks but can go nine points clear of their nearest rivals with a win at the Parc des Princes.
Paris Saint-Germain – RC Lens Saturday at 21:00 CET (1900 GMT)
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PSG’s difficult 2023 started with a 3-1 defeat away to Lens at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis on January 1. That was their first defeat of the season and their first of eight losses in 19 games in all competitions in the calendar year. The capital club were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League and the Coupe de France in the last 16 and have lost five of 14 league games.
Despite that they are six points clear at the top of the table and last weekend’s 2-0 win away to OGC Nice – secured by goals from Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos - set them back on track for what would be a national record 11th league title.
There are doubts about how the Parisians will perform in front of their own fans after losing their last two matches at the Parc des Princes, against Stade Rennais FC and Olyjmpique Lyonnais. Another reverse here would certainly mean the title is in play, but a draw would surely be enough to end any realistic hopes Lens might have of pipping the reigning champions to first place.
“They are a team on form and have been performing well all season. That is linked to the quality of the players but also the work done by Franck Haise who has improved his team season after season,” said PSG coach Christophe Galtier on Friday.
Watch: PSG beat Nice to end losing run
“In our last match against them we struggled to get out of their press and we were caught out a lot on the counterattack. We need to be much more attacking than in recent matches but also make sure we are fully focused and concentrated when it comes to the transitions.”
Looking to take some of the pressure off his players, Galtier added: “It is an important match but it is not decisive. There will be seven more to come after this.”
‘No stress’ for Lens
PSG have not won any of their last three meetings with Lens and Les Sang et Or head to the capital on a run of four straight wins while also being unbeaten in their last seven league outings. That run has steadied the ship after a wobble in the early weeks of the year which threatened their chances of a top-three finish.
Qualifying for the Champions League must remain the number one objective even if a win would really allow the northern club to dream of a first league title since 1998. They already have their highest ever points total at this stage of a season.
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“We have not changed our approach or the way we prepare. There is no stress coming into this game. There is so much positive,” said Lens manager Haise, whose team beat RC Strasbourg Alsace 2-1 last weekend.
“If the Parisians win they will be nine points ahead of us. The title race will be over. They have the experience too. That doesn’t mean we can’t try to cause them problems. They have real international class players. We will need to be at our very best individually and collectively. If we are just a bit below that we know what will happen.”
Homecoming for Fofana, Verratti out
The game will be a special occasion for Lens skipper Seko Fofana. Linked with a move to PSG at the beginning of this season before he signed a new contract with his current club, the Ivory Coast international midfielder was born in Paris and brought up in the capital’s eastern 20th arrondissement. He supported PSG as a boy.
“My family will be coming to see me play so it is a pleasure to go back there and have a chance of beating them. Playing Paris requires different efforts, especially off the ball. We will see how they come into the game but we will stick to doing the things we know,” said the 27-year-old.
Lens are without Wesley Saïd for the trip but Polish forward Adam Buksa and wing-back Julien Le Cardinal are both available. Marco Verratti has been ruled out for Paris with a hamstring injury while Timothée Pembélé (knee) is missing too. Renato Sanches is out for several weeks after coming off early in last week’s win at Nice, while neither Nordi Mukiele nor Presnel Kimpembe will play again this season.
Possible teams
Paris SG: Donnarumma; Danilo Pereira, Marquinhos (c), Ramos; Hakimi, Fabián Ruiz, Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Nuno Mendes; Messi, Mbappé
Lens: Samba; Gradit, Danso, Medina; Frankowski, Abdul Samed, Fofana (c), Machado; Thomasson, Sotoca; Openda