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PSGvs.Lens

sportsmole.co.uk, 31 October 2024, 07:20
Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain welcome Lens to the French capital on Saturday evening as they seek to maintain their three-point buffer at the summit.

Luis Enrique's side have taken advantage of Monaco's recent slip to move clear at the top and will now face the other side that saw their unbeaten start ended last weekend.

Match preview

Despite question marks still remaining about PSG's start in Europe, with just four points from their opening three games, they are showing all the signs of being the dominant force domestically again.

PSG are the only side still unbeaten after both Monaco and Lens lost last weekend, and Enrique oversaw a very impressive win over bitter rivals Marseille in Le Classique.

For the first time in the fixture's history, PSG led 3-0 at the break away to l'OM, as a first-half red card to Amine Harit allowed the Parisians to cruise to a commanding victory.

That means they are now unbeaten in 12 trips to the Velodrome in Ligue 1, and they have not conceded at that venue since a 5-1 win in 2017.

Sitting top, PSG now look unlikely to relinquish that position after a few early blips saw them drop four points at the start of the campaign.

With seven wins and two draws on the board though, remaining undefeated against Lens here will see them start unbeaten after 10 league games for the 8th time since the Qatari takeover in 2011 - for context, only two other clubs in Ligue 1 have managed to do it at least once in that timeframe, Nice and Monaco.

Form at the Parc des Princes has been imperious so far for PSG, despite looking unconvincing against Girona and PSV Eindhoven in Europe, they have netted 16 goals in their four home Ligue 1 games this season, even if they have only kept one clean sheet in 15 league games here.

Lens could not handle PSG last season, losing both encounters to the eventual champions, and they could suffer a fourth straight defeat against the club from the capital here for just the fourth time in their history.

The visitors won five games in succession against PSG heading into the 2007-08 season, but they are winless in the subsequent eight meetings, losing five.

Heading to the capital is already a daunting task, but Lens will now go there bruised following a cruel late defeat in the Derby du Nord against Lille last weekend.

The draw specialists looked set for a sixth in seven games, but a controversial penalty saw Jonathan David give LOSC the lead in the 98th minute, before a second was added just minutes later, with manager Will Still bemoaning the decision afterwards.

Pragmatism from the new Lens boss has paid off to an extent, as the Blood and Gold are in the European hunt, despite drawing the majority of their games so far, as they sit fifth just three points off the top four.

That is made even more remarkable when you consider that no club outside the relegation zone has a worse attacking record than them, with Still's men having netted only nine times in nine games so far.

Paris Saint-Germain Ligue 1 form:

W

D

W

D

W

W

Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):

W

L

D

W

D

W

Lens Ligue 1 form:

D

D

D

D

W

L

Team News

PSG will be without defender Lucas Beraldo due to suspension, as well as Presnel Kimpembe, Lucas Hernandez and Goncalo Ramos, who are all recovering from long-term injuries.

Bradley Barcola has been the player of the season so far in Ligue 1, and his tally of eight is just one short of Lens' entire total so far this season.

With a clash against Atletico Madrid coming up in midweek though, Enrique may be tempted to rest Barcola, and some other key players ahead of that important encounter.

Like PSG, Lens will also be without a South American defender due to an accumulation of yellow cards, because Facundo Medina will sit this one out for the visitors.

Medina started as a wing-back last week, but Jhoanner Chaves is likely to come in, and there was believed to be no injury involved in Przemyslaw Frankowski's half-time sub against Lille.

Wesley Said, Jimmy Cabot, Martin Satriano and Ruben Aguilar are all set to remain on the sidelines for Lens though, as Still may name a similar side to the one that was edged out in the Derby du Nord.

Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Hakimi, Skriniar, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Mayulu, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha; Marco Asensio, Kolo Muani, D Doue

Lens possible starting lineup:

Samba; Gradit, Danso, Khusanov; Frankowski, Thomasson, Diouf, Chavez; Sotoca, Nzola, Zaroury

We say: Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 Lens

PSG's incapability of keeping a clean sheet at home will give Lens belief that they have a chance, but the scoring record of the league leaders speaks for itself so far, having netted three or more in all of their home games.

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