PSG vs. Lorient: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream and TV Info

The jubilation of Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League victory over Chelsea was quickly forgotten when Laurent Blanc's side were beaten by Girondins de Bordeaux on Sunday afternoon.

However, they have a chance to pick up three points off FC Lorient at the Parc des Princes on Friday night and pile the pressure on league leaders Olympique Lyonnais.

It won’t be an easy task for PSG. Injuries are again an issue, and Les Merlus have a great record of causing upsets in Paris.

Date: Friday, March 20

Time: 7:30 p.m. GMT/8:30 p.m. CET/3:30 p.m. ET

Venue: Parc des Princes, Paris

TV Info: beIN Sport (U.S.), BT Sport (UK)

Live Stream: BT Sport 

David Vincent/Associated Press

Over the past five years, Lorient have left the Parc des Princes with two wins and two draws. That’s an incredible 12 points out of a possible 18. This season at the Stade du Moustoir, they went ahead through Raphael Guerreiro's strike before PSG rallied and came back to win 2-1 in Brittany.

Lorient have been rocked by the loss of midfield talisman Guerreiro, who is suffering from a muscle strain in his left leg. The pressure will fall on FCL's attacking duo to create chances, and January signing Romain Philippoteaux must step up.

There will be no David Luiz for PSG. The Brazilian was already suspended for this game but was taken off with a hamstring injury against Bordeaux. Marquinhos will also miss out, as will Yohan Cabaye and Serge Aurier.

Form (Last Five Games)

Paris Saint-Germain

L Bordeaux 3-2 PSG—Ligue 1

D Chelsea 2-2 PSG—Champions League

W PSG 4-1 Lens—Ligue 1

W PSG 2-0 Monaco—Coupe de France

D Monaco 0-0 PSG—Ligue 1

FC Lorient

W Lorient 2-1 Caen—Ligue 1

L Saint-Etienne 2-0 Lorient—Ligue 1

L Evian 1-0 Lorient—Ligue 1

W Lorient 2-0 Bastia—Ligue 1

D Lorient 1-1 Lorient—Ligue 1

Predicted Formations

Paris Saint-Germain: 4-3-3—Salvatore Sirigu; Gregory van der Wiel, Zoumana Camara, Thiago Silva, Maxwell; Thiago Motta, Adrien Rabiot, Blaise Matuidi; Javier Pastore, Edinson Cavani, Zlatan Ibrahimovic

FC Lorient: 4-4-2—Benjamin Lecomte; Lamine Gassama, Lamine Kone, Wesley Lautoa, Vincent Le Goff; Romain Philippoteaux; Francois Bellugou, Walid Mesloub, Yann Jouffre; Benjamin Jeannot, Jordan Ayew

Getty Images

Players to Watch

At the start of the week, it would have been easy to say Portuguese midfielder Guerreiro was the man to watch for FC Lorient. But Guerreiro is out due to injury, so Sylvain Ripoll will have to look elsewhere for inspiration. Luckily, he has a forward who has scored eight times this season.

Jordan Ayew is Lorient's top scorer this season despite representing his country at the Africa Cup of Nations in January. Add his five assists to the goals tally, and he is Lorient's most productive player.

The Ghanaian scored in last week’s 2-1 win over Caen, but that was only his second goal of 2015. If Lorient want to continue their great record in France’s capital, they will need to Ayew to be at his best. Playing up top against PSG can be a lonely task, and young Jordan still has a tendency to drift out of games. His mood will be paramount to Lorient's success.

Laurent Cipriani/Associated Press

Key Battle

Hardworking midfielder Walid Mesloub has been in excellent form for Lorient this season. He not only does all the dirty work for Ripoll's side, but he also is the man who brings their play together and always looks to create from deep.

PSG's three-man midfield will be no easy task for Mesloub, especially without regular partner Rafidine Abdullah. Unless Ripoll changes to a 4-2-3-1, Lorient will have to work extra hard to compete.

Blanc has to choose a trio to use on Friday, but whoever is on the pitch will give Mesloub a tough time. Marco Verratti may be rested, giving the Algerian midfielder an interesting battle against Adrien Rabiot.

Odds (via Oddschecker)

PSG: 3-10

Draw: 5-1

Lorient: 12-1