Saturday’s Ligue 1 action gets underway at the Parc des Princes as a rampant Paris Saint-Germain side lock horns with mid-table Troyes.
Goals rained down in Paris as household frontline trio Neymar, Kylian Mbappe & Lionel Messi inspired Christophe Galtier’s team to a mouth-watering 7-2 win over Maccabi Haifa in midweek Champions League action.
While the ‘MNM’ shined like a diamond again to claim PSG’s knock-out berth with a game to spare, Carlos Soler became the first Les Parisiens player outside the dynamic trio to get on the scoresheet since September.
Galtier’s formidable attacking trident will be under the spotlight on Saturday when the joint-record French champions go out to keep their 18-game unbeaten 2022/23 start intact (W14, D4).
One of only two sides across Europe’s top-five leagues yet to taste defeat in competitive football this season, the hosts boast a five-point lead over second-placed Lens.
Troyes’ upcoming visit to the French capital promises another routine three points for PSG, who haven’t lost any of their last 14 Ligue 1 H2H encounters on home turf (W11, D3).
Bruno Irles’ men may have picked themselves up from a dreadful three-match losing top-flight start to obtain points in seven of their last nine league outings (W3, D4), but they are over their heads here.
Ligue 1 surprise package Lorient hit back twice to hold Le ESTAC to a morale-damaging 2-2 draw at the Stade de l’Aube last time out, provoking a furious reaction from Irles over his porous defence.
Match Preview
Paris Saint-Germain
It’s not all about scoring with Galtier, as last weekend’s 3-0 victory at promoted Ajaccio contributed to PSG’s best defensive record of only five goals conceded after 12 Ligue 1 rounds since 1996/97.
But who cares about defending when you have such a potent attacking line-up at your disposal? Paris’ impressive scoring average of 2.66 goals per league game is likely to go up come Saturday.
You’d have to go back to 2001 for PSG’s last scoring blank against Troyes, though it’s worth noting Mbappe & Co have bagged precisely one goal in three of their four previous home league outings.
Troyes
After conceding at least twice in four of their first six away Ligue 1 matches (W2, L4), coach Irles would be forgiven for doubting his side’s ability to cope with PSG’s free-flowing attack.
Yet Irles has already accomplished extraordinary things with Troyes in 2022. He has led them to four top-flight victories on the road since the turn of the year (D3, L9), already equalling the club’s highest tally in a single calendar year in Ligue 1.
However, with no win from their last ten league visits to the Parc des Princes (D2, L8), Le ESTAC may have to wait for a better opportunity to make history.
Paris Saint-Germain vs Troyes Potential Line-ups
Paris Saint-Germain (3-4-3): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Sergio Ramos, Marquinhos, Presnel Kimpembe; Achraf Hakimi, Marco Verratti, Vitinha, Nuno Mendes; Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar.
Troyes (5-4-1): Mateusz Lis; Thierno Balde, Erik Palmer-Brown, Jackson Porozo, Yoann Salmier, Yasser Larouci; Rony Lopes, Rominigue Kouame, Xavier Chavalerin,Wilson Odobert; Mama Balde
How to Watch?
PSG vs Troyes, coupled with all other Ligue 1 fixtures, is available to watch online via Ligue 1 live streams.
Paris Saint-Germain vs Troyes Prediction
Troyes deserve the credit for holding high-flying Lorient winless last weekend, but replicating that feat against PSG looks far-fetched.
With Galtier’s men firing on all cylinders again, we have no other option but to back the reigning Ligue 1 holders to put their visitors to the sword.
Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Troyes
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