Angers vs. PSG: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream, TV Info
Results this weekend gave Paris Saint-Germain a 13-point lead at the summit of Ligue 1, crowning Laurent Blanc’s side as Autumn champions following the 4-1 win over Troyes on Saturday.
Tuesday’s fixture against Angers unpredictably sees first play third, but it's far from a title-battle matchup, with Angers closer to the relegation zone than they are the champions elect.
Angers’ record is as good on the road as it is at the Stade Jean-Bouin, but the home atmosphere and the superb position of Stephane Moulin’s team to start the game will give them reasons to be optimistic. With their well-organised team unit and tough-to-beat defence, they will provide a stiff test for PSG so soon after the weekend’s fixtures.
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A mere 21 years have passed since these two sides last played a league game against each other. PSG beat Angers 3-0 in the old French Division 1, with Vincent Guerin scoring twice and David Ginola popping up on the scoresheet.
The last time Angers beat PSG in any fixture came in 1975, when 4,964 fans turned up at the Jean-Bouin to see their side win 3-1—they would definitely take that again on Tuesday.
Date: Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Time: 6:00 p.m. BST (1:00 p.m ET)
Venue: Stade Jean-Bouin, Angers
TV Info: BT Sport (UK), beIN Sports (US)
Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect (US)
Form Lines
| Angers SCO | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Angers 2-0 Lille (Ligue 1) | PSG 4-1 Troyes (Ligue 1) |
| Caen 0-0 Angers (Ligue 1) | Malmo 0-5 PSG (Champions League) |
| Angers 0-2 Rennes (Ligue 1) | Lorient 1-2 PSG (Ligue 1) |
| Monaco 1-0 Angers (Ligue 1) | PSG 5-0 Toulouse (Ligue 1) |
| Tours 1-0 Angers (Coupe de la Ligue) | Real Madrid 1-0 PSG (Champions League) |
On Saturday evening, Blanc changed his tactics for the start of the game against Troyes, but even playing against the team at the bottom of the league, he wasn’t entirely happy with their performance.
"We played in a somewhat new system, even if 4-3-3 is often played with two points of attack in (Zlatan) Ibrahimovic and Edinson (Cavani),” Blanc explained to Ligue1.com. “We did it to see what it looked like, and to give confidence to our forwards. In the first half we did not do what we had to do, especially offensively. The players should have been better.”
It will be interesting to see how Blanc starts the game on Tuesday. Away from home, he will likely go back to the 4-3-3. Both Adrien Rabiot and substitute Jean-Kevin Augustin played well at the weekend, and it would be nice to see the PSG boss give the youngsters more minutes.
Blanc admitted on Monday, via Canal-Supporters.com (in French) that only Serge Aurier and Ezequiel Lavezzi were likely to rejoin the squad, with Javier Pastore still out injured. He also suggested that there would be changes, expected with the mid-week fixtures.
Angers' only doubt was over centre-back Romain Thomas. He picked up a head knock on Saturday against Lille, but he was present during Monday’s training session—no decision would be made until closer to the game.
Predicted Formations
Angers (4-3-3): Ludovic Butelle; Vincent Manceau, Ismael Traore, Gael Angoula, Yoann Andreu; Cheikh N'Doye, Romain Saiss, Thomas Mangani; Gilles Sunu, Abdoul Camara, Billy Ketkeophomphone
PSG (4-3-3): Kevin Trapp; Gregory van der Wiel, Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Layvin Kurzawa; Thiago Motta, Blaise Matuidi, Adrien Rabiot; Angel Di Maria, Lucas Moura, Jean-Kevin Augustin
Player to Watch
Signed from Creteil in the summer, Senegalese midfielder Cheikh N’Doye has been a revelation for Angers this season. Not only is he physically impressive, a real man mountain, but he is agile and quick along the ground, making him an intimidating opponent.
No one in the PSG midfield can compete with him physically, and he will be a threat from set pieces. Not just a danger from dead-ball situations, if the away side take their foot off the gas and let N’Doye get on the front foot, he will time runs into the box and cause problems for the champions.
Key Battle
On Saturday night, Angers' 2-0 win over Lille was built on the back of organisation and discipline. Two neat banks of four sat in front of Les Dogues when they had the ball. Cutting the passing lanes, stopping the creative players getting on the ball and limiting the away side’s time on the ball.
PSG are in a different league when it comes to their ability, but they will still need to show patience and invention to break down Moulin’s well-drilled team.
In attack, Angers play 4-3-3, but without the ball, they all track back to provide a low block that is difficult to penetrate. According to WhoScored, Lille managed only eight shots on Saturday, but only four of them came from inside the area.
Blanc will look to players like Rabiot, Di Maria and maybe Lucas Moura to provide width and creativity against this very impressive unit. Verratti’s continued absence limits the opportunities PSG create from deep. If Angers play well and limit the space that PSG need to create chances, it will take moments of individual magic to break down the second-best team in Ligue 1.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Home win: 342/25
Away win: 100/417
Draw: 431/100
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