Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City face off at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday night in what is arguably the most crucial fixture of matchday seven in the Champions League league phase.
Initially expected to be a routine encounter, the match has now taken on greater significance for both sides following their underwhelming starts to the European campaign.
PSG manager Luis Enrique holds an impressive record against City’s Pep Guardiola, having lost only two of their five previous encounters.
He is also one of just two managers, alongside Jürgen Klopp, to have defeated Guardiola by three or more goals on multiple occasions.
Manchester City’s struggles in Europe have mirrored PSG’s, with early setbacks impacting their domestic form.
However, City appear to be regaining momentum, having won four of their last five matches.
Despite losing only three of their previous 28 away games in the Champions League, they are currently on a two-game losing streak on the road— their worst run since the 2011-12 season— after defeats to Sporting Lisbon and Juventus, which have put their qualification hopes in jeopardy.
Here are key points to know ahead of this high-stakes clash.
1 Paris SG have only won one of their seven matches against Manchester City in European competition (D2 L4). Among teams they’ve faced more than five times in Europe, this is their lowest win percentage against any opponent (14%).
2 Paris SG won their last home match against Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League, despite attempting just six shots (2-0 in September 2021). This remains the fewest shots they’ve had on record (since 2003-04) in a home match in the competition.
3 Paris SG won 3-0 against FC Salzburg on MD6, registering as many wins and goals as they had across their previous seven games in the UEFA Champions League (W1 D2 L4). They last won consecutive games in the competition last February when they beat Real Sociedad home and away in the last 16.
4 This will be the fifth meeting between Paris SG’s Luis Enrique and Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola, with both winning two games each in the UEFA Champions League. However, along with Jürgen Klopp (2), Luis Enrique is one of only two managers to have beaten Guardiola by 3+ goals on multiple occasions (3-0 in May 2015 and 4-0 in October 2016, both in charge of Barcelona).
Paris Saint-Germain Champions League form:
WLDLLW
Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):
Manchester City Champions League form:
EPL: Liverpool go nine points clear after thrashing Man City
Manchester City form (all competitions):
Paris Saint-Germain’s possible starting lineup:
Donnarumma; Hakimi, Pacho, Hernandez, Nuno Mendes; Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Dembele, Doue, Barcola
Manchester City’s possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Lewis, Ruben Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol; Bernardo Silva, Kovacic, De Bruyne; Foden, Haaland, Savinho
Predictions
Over 1.5
Away straight win
Date
Jan 22, 2025
KO
9:00 pm
Venue
Parc des Princes
