Ahead of today's visit of Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain know a mistake could cost them their place in the UCL.
It's matchday 7 of the 2024/25 Champions League and today's matches could prove fatal for one of Europe's biggest clubs. Manchester City's trip to Paris Saint-Germain is undoubtedly the most talked-about trip of the round and the stakes could hardly be higher.
Both PSG and City have seriously underperformed this season, each managing just two wins from their opening six games. Hopes of automatic qualification for the round of 16 are gone and one of them could soon leave the competition entirely.
PSG are 26th in the 36-team league, two places away from the final play-off spot. If the French champions lose to Manchester City and Real Madrid, Celtic and Dinamo Zagreb all win their Wednesday matches, PSG will be three points behind with one game to go. That would leave the team needing a miracle in Matchweek 8 to avoid a dismal exit from the league stage.
PSG will face a Man City team that, while not as imperious as in previous years, is still one of the strongest on the continent. Pep Guardiola's side got back into gear last weekend with a 6-0 thrashing of Ipswich Town and City will be keen to maintain that momentum.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, PSG head coach Luis Enrique admitted the prospect of facing City is daunting. He knows a positive result is needed to ensure his side's Champions League campaign continues beyond this month.
“I hope the most important match is not against Manchester City. I hope that in the next stage of the competition it will be at a very high level, with the trophy at stake,” Luis Enrique explained.
“I hope to play more important games, but this is a special game because in the new Champions League format, I don't think anyone could have predicted that City would have this number of points before matchday seven.”
He continued: “But that's football and that's the new format. At the moment we don't know how many points we need to qualify, no one can say. Maybe we will know after this match day.”
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