Did you know Saint Etienne is the club with the most titles won in the French championship a.k.a. Ligue 1? Unfortunately for their fans, the last of those was won back in the season 1980/1981. And considering how mighty PSG are, Saint Etienne’s glory days aren’t likely to come back anytime soon. But, can they at least cause an upset at Parc des Princes by not losing to mighty PSG? Find out in this PSG vs Saint Etienne match preview!
PSG
This Friday, PSG will have to take on Saint Etienne without several of their key men. The biggest problem, of course, is the absence of Kylian Mbappe, who’s suspended because of the red card he received in the previous Ligue 1 match. Apart from him, PSG will miss a few more players who are struggling with their fitness. Some of those guys include Dani Alves, Lassana Diarra, Marco Verratti and Layvin Kurzawa.
But, even without them, PSG seem much stronger than any other team in the Ligue 1. They’ve won every single match this season, but to be completely frank, they weren’t too impressive in all of them. Although their attack has been pretty lethal, PSG have been allowing many goals. In fact, they allowed a total of four goals in their previous three league games.
Some say that this is because Buffon isn’t their number one choice, but I have to disagree. Areola has been playing really well this season, making a number of brilliant saves. So, why are they not playing well in defense?
Well, it seems that they’re not yet accustomed to the strategy of their new manager, Tuchel. But, as the time passes, they should start playing better defensively. In the meantime, it’s up to their attackers to fix any problems caused by leaky defense.
Saint Etienne
There’s no doubt that Saint Etienne will try to hit PSG in their weakest spot, which is their defense. Therefore, we can expect them to come to start the match with a pretty attacking-minded formation. But, scoring against PSG won’t be easy for them, at least judging by their attacking performances so far this season.
Saint Etienne have scored only 3 goals in the league this season, all of which happened in the first two rounds. It seems that they have been more focused on defending which isn’t a surprise considering that their best players are at the back.
First of all, there’s Ruffier, who’s one of the best goalkeepers in the league. They also have a pair of very talented central defenders, Subotic and Gabriel Silva. And they have Yann M’Vila in the middle of the pitch, a strong defensive midfielder who knows how to win the ball.
Team News
PSG absentees:
- Dani Alves (injury)
- Lassana Diarra (injury)
- Marco Verratti (injury)
- Layvin Kurzawa (injury)
- Kylian Mbappe (suspension)
Saint Etienne absentees:
- Romain Hamouma (injury)
Possible Lineups
PSG
Areola – Thiago Silva, Kimpembe, Meunier, Marquinhos – Rabiot, Nsoki, Draxler – Di Maria, Neymar, Cavani
Saint Etienne
Ruffier – Subotic, Gabriel Silva, Debuchy, Kolodziejczak – M’Vila, Seinaes, Nordin – Cabella, Khazri, Monnet-Paquet
PSG vs Saint Etienne Match Prediction
PSG are clear favorites here, but Saint Etienne are great at defending. So, I’m not sure how many goals will we see on Friday evening. If the visitors open up early, it’s guaranteed there will be lots of goals. But, if they decide to play ultra-defensively, PSG will struggle to score. Of course, that doesn’t mean they won’t score. I have no doubts Neymar and his teammates will find the net at least once.
PSG vs Saint Etienne Betting Tips
- PSG @1.20 (Unibet)
- Asian Handicap +2.5 Saint Etienne @1.56 (Unibet)