PSG will look to make it two wins from two to begin their Ligue 1 campaign as they welcome Angers to the Parc des Princes on Friday night.
Luis Enrique’s hosts made a winning start to the defence of their Ligue 1 title last Sunday night, as they won 0-1 away at Nantes thanks to a second-half strike from Vitinha.
That win came just four days after their dramatic success in the Super Cup, as they scored twice from the 85th minute onwards to force a penalty shootout with Spurs, in which they defeated the North London club.
After earning promotion back to Ligue 1 the season before last, Angers would’ve been delighted not to make a return to the French second tier, as they finished in 14th position, three points clear of the relegation playoff position.
Alexandre Dujeux’s visitors made the ideal start to the campaign last Sunday, as they defeated the fellow Parisian club, newly promoted Paris FC, by a goal to nil on an afternoon when our man Kevin successfully backed against both sides scoring.
How the bookies view it: Parisians clear favourites
Unsurprisingly, PSG have been installed as clear favourites to claim all three points in this one, with BoyleSports pricing them at just 1/12.
The visitors are a massive 20/1 to claim a shock victory, whilst the draw is also unfancied, with that available at 10/1, both with BoyleSports.
Head to head: PSG dominance
Perhaps also unsurprisingly, PSG have absolutely dominated this fixture in the past decade, winning each of their previous 18 meetings with Angers, including home and away last season (1-0 & 2-4).
Players to watch: Doue to deliver?
Following on from his 21 goals in the French top flight last season, Ousmane Dembele is the standout option to get on the scoresheet here, but is way too short to back to get on the scoresheet with BoyleSports pricing the ex-Barcelona star at just 1/2.
An alternative option could be the highly talented Desire Doue who is 7/5 at Unibet. The 20-year-old scored six times in Ligue 1 last season, including the only goal in their 1-0 victory against Angers in the capital.
Predicted line-ups:
Presnel Kimpembe and Senny Mayulu are both deemed as doubtful for PSG, but Portuguese midfielder Joao Neves is available again following suspension.
Angers will be without midfielder Louis Mouton following his red card against Paris FC last weekend.
Paris Saint-Germain: Chevalier, Hakimi, Pacho, Marquinhos, Mendes, Vitinha, Neves, Ruiz, Doue, Kvaratskhelia, Dembele
Angers: Koffi, Camara, Arcus, Lefort, Raolisoa, Capelle, Belkebla, Hanin, Belkhdim, Cherif, Lepaul
Anything else catch the eye?
As stated above, PSG have dominated Angers in the past decade, winning each of the previous 18 meetings between the two sides, and it would be a surprise if they failed to claim all three points on Friday night.
Angers’ matches on their travels were low-scoring last season, with their 17 road trips averaging just two goals per game, with only two (12%) of them featuring four or more goals.
All eight of their road defeats last season featured fewer than four goals, failing to score in seven of them – including a 1-0 loss in the fixture – so a low-scoring win for the Parisians is the way I’m keen to attack this one.
GambleAware