On the eve of against Tottenham on 19:00 (UTC) Wednesday, August 13 in the Stadio Friuli in Udine in the European Super Cup final, we look at the first major challenge of the season of Paris Saint-Germain. From the form of the teams to the dynamics and players to watch, here is an overview of the European collision that is waiting for our Rouge et Bleu against a Spurs side in transition.
A battle for European champions
After standing out in the group stage of last season's Europa League, the Londoners AZ Alkmaar eliminated in the round of 16, before they got a large scalp by eliminating another of the heavyweights of the competition, Eintracht Frankfurt (1-1, 0-1). In the next round, Spurs took their status as favorites against Bodø/Glimt, the surprising guests in the semi -final and the team that eliminated Lazio. Thanks to two victories against the dual Norwegian champions (3-1, 0-2), the North London club reached the final and, after a hard-fought, claimed their third Europa League/UEFA Cup title (1-0).
As far as Paris Saint-Germain is concerned, their journey was full of turns. Les Rouge et Bleu, who had to go through the play-offs and had to beat an exceeded Brest side (0-3, 7-0), caused a sensation in the round of 16 by getting a historical qualification on fines against Liverpool in Anfield (0-1, 0-1). This was the prelude to a run with English theme for our Parisians, who defeated Aston Villa in the next round after going through all the emotions (3-1, 3-2). The Capital Club then surprised Arsenal by hitting the Gunners on their home grass (0-1), before he won in a red-hot Parc des Princes (2-1). The rest, as they say, is European history: after a perfect achievement, Paris Saint-Germain Inter Milan has beaten and added the Champions League to their impressive list of honor (5-0).
The dynamics in numbers
1: Paris Saint-Germain and Tottenham Hotspur will be confronted with each other in official competition for the first time.
8: Tottenham is the eighth other English team participating in the UEFA Super Cup, while Paris is the only French team participating in this trophy (two performances, in 1997 and 2025).
36: Ousmane Dembélé is the player involved in most goals in Europe's top five competitions in all competitions in 2025 (36 – 27 goals, 9 assists).
Romero, Bentancur, Richarlison … A look at the opposition
Thomas Frank and his team are expected to start the season with a 4-3-3 formation. The Italian international Guglielmo Vicario starts in Doel, before Antonín Kinský. In the central defense, the Dutch international Micky van de Ven will probably work Cristian Romero in the heart of the London Club's back line. Former lens player Kevin Danso and the very young Luka Vuskovic were able to start the game on the couch, while Radu Drimes is injured.
To the right of the central combination, the Spanish international Pedro Porro is a leader for the London side. It is still to be seen whether the former Rennes player Djed Spence or Italian International Destiny Udogie, who recently sustained a knee injury, will take the starting point on the left, while the experienced Ben Davies can also play in that position. In the role of midfield, Bavarian who signed João Palhinha would have to bring stability in the midfield of Spurs and the promising youngsters could already be Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray in the pecking order.
The two 19-year-old midfielders can also play a little higher, but Rodrigo Bentancur and Pape Matar Sarr seem to have the lead. However, there is also the Yves Bissouma option, formerly Van Losc. In the event of attack, playmaker James Maddison is not available, while Dejan Kulusevski recovers from a knee injury. On the right wing it is expected that the last hero of Bilbao Brennan Johnson will start, while Mohammed Kudus, Spurs' Star Summer Signing, could start on the left flank.
With Wingers Bryan Gil and Manor Solomon absent, the former Titi Wilson Odobert, who trained at the club until U19 level, appeared on the field during the game. The French U21 International will undoubtedly be accompanied by a countryman in the national team: Mathys Tel, who trained with a certain … Désiré Doué at Stade Rennais FC. The former striker of Bayern Munich will compete for a starting berth with Brazilian international Richarlison and Dominic Solanke. However, it is the first to currently have the favor of the London coach to start as a center ahead against the Parisians.