Why PSG Will Win 3 Trophies in the 2015-16 Season

Paris Saint-Germain are looking good for another successful season in France.

Runaway leaders in Ligue 1—already a huge 21 points clear of second-placed AS Monaco—Les Parisiens have the Trophee des Champions under their belt and they are on course to add more silverware to that haul in the coming months.

Laurent Blanc’s men are into the semi-finals of the Coupe de la Ligue and the Coupe de France round of 16, as well as the latter stages of the UEFA Champions League.

Last season, the French capital outfit completed a domestic clean sweep—Ligue 1, Coupe de la Ligue, Coupe de France and Trophee des Champions—for the first time in the history of club football in the country.

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Stronger this term than they were last, there is little doubt that PSG can repeat that feat if they put their mind to it.

That is the issue with the French champions, though. With Champions League progress required and the domestic cups a distraction, where do their priorities lie?

Considered one part of a domestic “quadruple,” PSG have already secured their first piece of silverware this campaign with the Trophee des Champions.

Blanc and his team secured the prize with a 2-0 win over Olympique Lyonnais in Montreal back in August, so Le President’s men already possess one of a potential quintuple of titles they are competing for this season.

The Ligue 1 title is already well on its way to joining the Trophee des Champions at Parc des Princes this season.

PSG currently lead second-placed Monaco by 21 points, and although that margin might be trimmed over the second half of the campaign, there is little chance of Les Monegasques fully bridging that gap and overtaking the leaders.

So commanding is Les Parisiens’ lead at Le Championnat’s summit that they set a new record points tally for the midway mark of a season with 51. There is a very good chance the five-time champions will set a new total-points haul by the end of this term, breaking their own record of 89 from 2013-14.

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As for the Coupe de la Ligue, PSG are already into the semi-finals, and Blanc’s men can book their first appearance at Stade de France for this campaign if they beat Toulouse at Parc des Princes next week.

After beating Dominique Arribage’s men 1-0 away in Ligue 1 and 2-1 at home in the Coupe de France in the past seven days, the defending champions will be confident that they will down Le Tefece and reach their third straight final in the competition.

Should PSG get their hands on the Coupe de la Ligue, then the only domestic front that they will face a challenge on is the Coupe de France.

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A recent 2-1 home win over Toulouse has put Blanc’s side into the round of 16, and they are now awaiting the draw to discover their next opponents.

With that fixture to be played sometime before PSG host Chelsea in the Champions League in mid-February, the Ligue 1 leaders will end up playing 10 matches in the five weeks leading up to their clash with the Blues.

Guus Hiddink’s English champions, meanwhile, will play four games less in the build-up to their trip to Paris.

Blanc is unhappy with the provisional schedule for the Coupe de France game and how they clash with the Champions League restart.

The 50-year-old had this to say about PSG’s request to reschedule their week in the build up to the Chelsea game after beating Toulouse on Tuesday, as reported by ESPN FC’s Mark Rodden:

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The way to sort out the problem would have been to get knocked out of the two (domestic) cup competitions, but we don't want that.

We're Paris Saint-Germain—we can't think like that—but on the other hand, I hope our last week (before the Chelsea game) will be rearranged.

We hope that the federation pay attention to this request. It's going to cause some grinding of teeth but we're also fighting for France's UEFA co-efficient.

"

However, former PSG coach Gerard Houllier told L’Equipe (h/t ESPN FC’s Mark Rodden) that he believes Blanc is wrong to ask for the fixtures to be changed:

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I understand what Laurent wants to say but he's wrong. Last year, they won everything. That allowed them to remain dynamic.

They performed well by playing every three days and with a schedule during the cup competitions that seemed to me to be more difficult.

The players want to play. And if you say they're tired, they're tired.

"

In many ways, some might have viewed it as a blessing in disguise if Toulouse actually knocked them out of the Coupe de France in the capital on Tuesday—at least Blanc and the PSG hierarchy might have thought so.

Earlier this season, as reported by ESPN FC’s Mark Rodden, the French tactician spoke about the possibility of letting one of the domestic cups go. Blanc’s attitude back then tallies with what he said after the Toulouse win on Tuesday:

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There's no blueprint that gives you the guarantee of going a long way in the Champions League.

Bayern were champions of Germany after I don't remember how few games. They were able to focus on the Champions League -- but they didn't win it.

I think what's important is to try to have your key players available in April and May.

We're going to try and control some things in terms of training, in terms of the workload and in terms of rotation for matches because there will be a lot of them.

Have you seen the calendar for the national cup competitions? It's catastrophic for the Champions League. So we might let one of the two (cups) go.

"

PSG could still win the Coupe de France this season, but they are likely to keep fielding weakened sides as the schedule becomes more and more hectic as the return to Champions League action approaches.

Ultimately, if it comes down to it, PSG appear to be prepared to choose to give themselves a chance to be in top condition for their Champions League games, rather than playing at full strength to defend their Coupe de France title.

If Les Parisiens do prioritise European football over one—or both—domestic cups, then it is possible that they beat Chelsea over two legs to reach the Champions League quarter-finals again and they go on to beat any potential opponents that follow the Blues.

However, there is no guarantee that sacrificing one or both of the domestic cups will mean an extended continental run and the club’s second semi-final appearance.

PSG certainly have the quality to reach the last four of the Champions League and to replicate last season’s domestic clean sweep. That is unlikely to happen, though, as the priority placed on European progress by Blanc is likely to result in an early exit from at least one of the two domestic cups.

Consequently, PSG are only likely to win the Trophee des Champions, Ligue 1 and one of the domestic cup titles.