Monaco’s bad form extended to the Champions League midweek, and just days before the ultimate task in French football when they host local hegemon PSG.
Monaco have been inconsistent since the very start of the season, with their best run being two wins in a row. And instead of improving, their situation has only worsened lately, with a single win in their last five competitive fixtures.
The Monegasques lost their last three Ligue 1 games, including back-to-back 4-1 defeats to Rennes and Lens. And this week on Wednesday, they couldn’t defeat the smallest side in the Champions League, Pafos, after a 2-2 draw in Cyprus.
PSG’s recent upset against Bayern Munich has been put to rest, and the Parisians won their three matches since, scoring 3+ goals each time. The 3-2 away at Lyon stands out and should give them even more confidence that they can handle Monaco away.
Luis Enrique has built a squad of interchangeable players and even Ousmane Dembele’s absence is hardly felt right now.
How the bookies view it: The Parisians to extend their winning streak
Bookmakers expect Monaco’s bad run to continue against the champions, giving them 4/1 to win on Saturday. The draw has been priced at 33/10, while PSG are available at 13/20.
Recent head-to-head: Monaco last won two years ago
The last few editions of this rivalry have been all about the Parisians. PSG won four of the last five matches (D1), while scoring 4+ goals in three of those wins. Last season’s equivalent of this fixture ended in a crushing 4-1 for PSG.
Monaco’s last win over this rival goes back to 2023, but they only won two of their last 10 home matches against PSG.
Players to watch: Neves is the future
Ousmane Dembele will soon return to full minutes, but fortunately for PSG, other youngsters have stepped up in his absence. We can highlight 21-year-old Joao Neves, who also missed over a month of action due to a muscle injury, but has returned in full force.
The young Portuguese star scored three goals and provided one assist in PSG’s last four games. We find great value in Betano’s market for him to score or assist in this match.
When a price looks too good to ignore, that’s value. Learn how to identify it with our Value Betting guide.
Probable line-ups
Monaco: Hradecky, Henrique, Kehrer, Salisu, Ouattara, Coulibaly, Camara, Vanderson, Akliouche, Fati, Balogun
Paris Saint-Germain: Chevalier, Zaire-Emery, Pacho, Marquinhos, Mendes, Neves, Vitinha, Ruiz, Barcola, Ramos, Kvaratskhelia
Anything else catch the eye?
Unfortunately for Monaco, everything points to another heavy defeat when they face the champions. The Monegasques conceded four goals in back-to-back Ligue 1 games, and neither Rennes, nor Lens are on PSG’s level this season.
The one positive is that PSG’s defence has not been flawless lately. Tottenham scored three goals and Lyon scored two. It is possible that Monaco also score in this match, so BTTS is an option, but we prefer Over 2.5 goals for our main prediction.
Other than that, the 13/20 odds for the Parisians to win carry some value, so you can also combine one of the goal markets with the win bet.
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