Chelsea travel to the French capital on Wednesday night to take on holders PSG in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
Chelsea just about secured their spot in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup at the weekend, as they required extra-time to defeat Championship side Wrexham 2-4 in an entertaining cup tie.
That result came three days after Chelsea put an end to their three-match winless run in the Premier League, securing an impressive 1-4 victory at Villa Park against Champions League rivals Aston Villa, moving them up into fifth position, just three points off third spot.
This will be the Blues’ first match in the Champions League since their 2-3 success in Naples at the end of January, with their sixth-place finish in the league phase meaning they avoided the playoff stage.
PSG, on the other hand, had to navigate past fellow Ligue 1 side Monaco in the playoff round after finishing 11th in the league phase table, with Luis Enrique’s men squeezing through 5-4 on aggregate.
However, the Principality club won 1-3 at the Parc des Princes on Friday in Ligue 1, with PSG seeing their lead at the top of the table reduced to one point following Lens’ 3-0 victory at home to basement boys Metz on Sunday.
How the bookies view it: PSG favourites
PSG are favourites to take an advantage over to West London next week, with bet365 pricing a home success at 10/11.
Chelsea are 27/10 to claim a win in Paris, whilst the draw is 14/5.
Head to head: Not much between the pair
These two clubs have crossed paths nine times since 2004, with both teams winning three times, whilst the other three ended in stalemates.
The most recent of those meetings came in the Club World Cup final last summer, with the Blues winning 3-0.
Players to watch: In-form Joao to strike again?
Liam Rosenior seems to be getting the best out of Joao Pedro, with the Brazilian scoring 11 goals across his 13 appearances since the Englishman took over from Enzo Maresca.
That includes a stunning double in Naples in Chelsea’s previous continental clash, and the 11/8 on offer at bet365 for the ex-Brighton attacker to score again on Wednesday night appeals to me.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Predicted line-ups:
PSG will be missing the injured Fabian Ruiz and Quentin Ndjantou, whilst Joao Neves is a doubt.
Chelsea are still without the injured Levi Colwill, Estevao and Jamie Gittens.
Paris Saint-Germain: Safonov, Hakimi, Zabarnyi, Pacho, Mendes, Vitinha, Zaire-Emery, Neves, Doue, Kvaratskhelia, Dembele
Chelsea: Sanchez, James, Chalobah, Fofana, Cucurella, Santos, Caicedo, Neto, Palmer, Fernandez, Pedro
Anything else catch the eye?
This should prove to be an entertaining clash in Paris on Wednesday night, with backing goals looking the sensible way to go.
Both teams to Score has been a winning selection in 17 of Chelsea’s previous 21 matches in all competitions – including in 11 of their past 13 away from home – whilst 16 (76%) have gone Over 2.5 Goals.
What’s more, PSG’s opening 10 Champions League contests have averaged an eye-catching 4.10 goals per game, with Over 2.5 Goals landing in eight (80%) of them, whilst eight of their past nine have produced goals at both ends.
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