Salzburgvs.PSG

Both clubs are in serious danger of missing out on the knockout stages, being among the biggest underperformers in the league phase so far.

Match preview

Failing to win the Champions League altogether is often enough for the PSG board to lose patience with a manager, so if current boss Enrique fails to even make it into the knockouts, then it is tough to see how his position would be tenable.

PSG have still not won in the Champions League since a fortunate, late 1-0 victory over Girona on matchday one, losing to Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich, while also drawing with PSV Eindhoven since.

This is Enrique's longest winless run in the Champions League as a manager, and it sees them down in 25th, with just four points from a possible 15.

Finding the net has been their biggest problem, both in Europe and domestically of late, with only Young Boys, Bologna and Sturm Graz having scored fewer.

With Manchester City and Stuttgart to come in January, PSG will likely need at least six points from their final three games to be in contention of advancing, and they did not have the best preparation for this game on Friday night, drawing 0-0 with Auxerre.

A lack of a clinical edge in attack cost the Parisians once more, because despite having 73% possession and 25 shots, they missed five big chances, saw opposing goalkeeper Donovan Leon make 11 saves, and fired a blank.

That was their third straight game without a win in all competitions, after also drawing with a struggling Nantes side a week earlier, and scoring just one goal in that mini-run is further cause for concern.

Salzburg are enduring an even worse campaign under new manager Pep Lijnders, because a defeat here could see them all but eliminated with two games to play.

They have already faced a French club this season, and lost 4-0 against Brest, equalling their worst-ever home defeat in the competition, as part of a three-game losing run to start the campaign, which saw them fail to score, and concede nine.

Lijnders would also see his side lose 2-0 to Dinamo Zagreb here, meaning the club is now on a six-game losing run at home in the UCL, as they now return to the Red Bull Arena after back-to-back away games.

After stunning Feyenoord with a 3-1 win at De Kuip, Salzburg quickly slipped back into old habits, being thrashed 5-0 at Bayer Leverkusen last time out in the midst of a four-game winless run that also saw them to lose to Linz-based clubs BW and LASK.

Salzburg did end that run by beating Hartberg, but they dropped more points at the weekend, only managing a 2-2 draw at home to Rapid Vienna, despite leading twice and missing a penalty, leaving them fifth, 13 points behind leaders Sturm Graz.

Red Bull Salzburg Champions League form:

D

L

L

L

W

L

Red Bull Salzburg form (all competitions):

L

L

L

D

W

D

Paris Saint-Germain Champions League form:

W

L

D

L

L

Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):

L

W

W

L

D

D

Team News

Salzburg's Kamil Piatkowski will face a late fitness test to see if he can recover from a knock after missing the weekend's fixture with Rapid, but fellow defenders Aleksa Terzic and Leandro Morgalla are expected to miss out.

In attack, Lijnders is without Karim Konate and Fernando, with offensive midfielder Maurits Kjaergaard also facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Goalkeeper Janis Blaswich, on loan from sister club RB Leipzig, is missing with a calf issue, so the experienced Alexander Schlager will deputise again, after making 10 saves in their draw on Saturday.

Enrique, potentially feeling the pressure mount, named the strongest team possible in Friday's clash with Auxerre, but that still was not enough to guide them to victory.

Any personnel changes are unlikely, with Joao Neves the only possible candidate to come into the side from the one that started at the Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps.

Ousmane Dembele is suspended after he was sent off against Bayern, while Lucas Hernandez and Senny Mayulu remain the two injured players in the PSG squad.

Red Bull Salzburg possible starting lineup:

Schlager; Capaldo, Piatkowski, Baidoo, Guindo; Clark, Bajcetic, Gloukh; Yeo, Ratkov, Nene

Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Lee, Goncalo Ramos, Barcola

We say: Red Bull Salzburg 1-3 Paris Saint-Germain

There was a lot on the line when these two met in the Europa League group stage in 2011-12, with Salzburg's 3-1 home win late in the section helping them edge PSG out, but it is tough to see a repeat scoreline here given their disastrous season so far.

Written by

Andrew Delaney

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