PSG vs. Monaco: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream and TV Info
Thanks to AS Monaco’s 2-2 draw at home to Stade de Reims last week, Paris Saint-Germain were able to confirm their fourth consecutive Ligue 1 title with a 9-0 spanking away at ESTAC Troyes just days later.
Leonardo Jardim’s men avoided handing Les Parisiens’ their latest Championnat crown in person, but Les Monegasques will have to witness the celebrations at Parc des Princes—regardless of the result—when they take on Laurent Blanc’s champions in the capital on Sunday.
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Date: Sunday, March 20
Time: 9 p.m. CET (8 p.m. GMT/4 p.m. EST)
Venue: Parc des Princes, Paris
TV Info: beIN Sports 1 (France), BT Sport 2 (UK), beIN Sports and beIN Sports ñ (USA)
Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect
Preamble
Fresh from sealing their sixth Ligue 1 title in Troyes last week, PSG will be keen to continue that momentum against Monaco in the capital on Sunday.
Between now and the end of the season, Blanc’s outfit have few testing fixtures in Le Championnat, and their meeting with the men from the principality is one of the few games that might require the recently crowned champions to get out of second gear.
Admittedly, Les Monegasques’ recent form has not been great—with four draws in their last five league outings—but Jardim and his players will still be keen to rain on PSG’s parade at Parc des Princes as they seek to add to their four-point lead over third-placed Stade Rennais.
Les Parisiens now know their UEFA Champions League quarter-final opponents are Manchester City, so Blanc can start to put his plans in place to have his key men fit for both legs against the English Premier League side.
However, fielding a weakened side against Monaco is probably not part of Le President’s thinking, and the hosts are likely to be close to full strength in Paris on Sunday night to celebrate their latest title with a win in front of their adoring supporters.
ASM have not won at Parc des Princes in Ligue 1 since back in January of 2010, but they have not lost there since February 2007 either.
That record could be at risk though, with Nabil Dirar and Bernardo Silva suspended and Joao Moutinho, Adama Traore, Fabio Coentrao and Mario Pasalic all out injured, per the principality outfit's squad on PSG's official website.
The hosts are not at full strength either and will be missing Marco Verratti, Javier Pastore, former Monaco man Layvin Kurzawa, Serge Aurier and Hervin Ongenda, according to the squad list on the capital club's official website.
Form Lines
PSG
L 2-1 vs. Olympique Lyonnais (Ligue 1)
W 1-3 vs. AS Saint-Etienne (Coupe de France)
D 0-0 vs. Montpellier HSC (Ligue 1)
W 1-2 vs. Chelsea (Champions League)
W 0-9 vs. ESTAC Troyes (Ligue 1)
Monaco
D 1-1 vs. Saint-Etienne (Ligue 1)
W 3-1 vs. Troyes (Ligue 1)
D 0-0 vs. FC Nantes (Ligue 1)
D 2-2 vs. SM Caen (Ligue 1)
D 2-2 vs. Reims (Ligue 1)
Predicted Formations
"Paris-Monaco : Les compos probables (L'Équipe) #Ligue1 #PSG #PSGASM pic.twitter.com/rxT6MpAEkD
— Paris No Limit™ (@ParisNoLimit) March 20, 2016"
PSG (4-3-3): Trapp; Marquinhos, Silva (c), Luiz, Maxwell; Motta, Rabiot, Matuidi; Di Maria, Ibrahimovic, Lucas.
Monaco (4-2-3-1): Subasic; Raggi, Wallace, Carvalho, Echiejile; Toulalan (c), Fabinho; Mbappe, Lemar, Costa; Love.
Player to Watch
Kylian Mbappe Lottin is starting to break through into this Monaco side after he scored as a substitute in the 3-1 home win over Troyes back in February.
The 17-year-old youth academy product has been limited to fleeting cameo appearances in the past two weeks but started the 0-0 draw away at Nantes immediately after his goal against Troyes.
Highly rated in the principality, Mbappe is a prolific young attacking talent, and he recently signed his first professional contract until 2019.
Tune in to get a glimpse of one of ASM's—and potentially France's—future stars. Mbappe is expected to start wide on the right in Jardim's 4-2-3-1.
Key Battle
If Monaco are to consolidate second place in Le Championnat, then they need to avoid defeat in Paris and perhaps even come away from Parc des Princes with all three points.
That is a tall order for Jardim’s men, who are not exactly prolific and will be faced with the tightest defence in the French top flight in the capital this weekend.
Wagner Love is likely to lead the line for Les Monegasques, and he has scored three times in his first seven Ligue 1 appearances—although two of those came against Reims last week.
If ASM are to penetrate the PSG back line, then the Brazilian will need to be in similar form to that he displayed at Stade Louis II last time out.
Likely to be up against the hosts’ captain Thiago Silva and one—or both—of David Luiz or Marquinhos, it will probably be an all-samba affair in this match’s key battle.
Odds (OddsShark)
PSG: -263
Monaco: +818
Draw: +341
