Lorient vs. PSG: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream and TV Info
Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain are bidding to reach a 14th Coupe de France final in the hope of going on to win the trophy for the second consecutive season, while FC Lorient are looking for a place in their second final in the competition—having won it back in 2002.
The pair meet at Stade du Moustoir on Tuesday for the semi-final just days before Les Parisiens return to the capital for the Coupe de la Ligue final against Lille OSC.
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Date: Tuesday, April 19
Time: 9 p.m. CET (8 p.m. GMT/3 p.m. EST)
Venue: Stade du Moustoir, Lorient
TV Info: France 2 (France)
Live Stream: N/A
Preamble
Lorient welcome PSG to Brittany on Tuesday for the first Coupe de France semi-final, and FC Sochaux-Montbeliard host Olympique de Marseille on Wednesday.
FCL will be hoping that despite a 6-0 thrashing of SM Caen over the weekend, Laurent Blanc's men will still be dwelling on their UEFA Champions league exit at the hands of Manchester City last week.
Les Merlus have not been in the best form of late, winning just one of their last five Ligue 1 fixtures, while the men from the capital have won three of their last five across all competitions.
If the French champions can raise themselves for the game, then they will hope that Sylvain Ripoll's men do not pose too many problems. With Lille to come in the Coupe de la Ligue final at Stade de France on Saturday, Blanc will be banking on as straightforward a match as possible.
However, this is a big occasion for Lorient and their supporters, so do not expect the Bretons to go down without a fight as they seek their second Coupe de France title.
Form Lines (all competitions)
Lorient
D 1-1 vs. Olympique de Marseille (Ligue 1)
L 5-1 vs. Angers SCO (Ligue 1)
L 1-3 vs. Olympique Lyonnais (Ligue 1)
W 1-2 vs. Caen (Ligue 1)
D 1-1 vs. Toulouse FC (Ligue 1)
PSG
W 4-1 vs. OGC Nice (Ligue 1)
D 2-2 vs. Manchester City (Champions League)
W 0-2 vs. EA Guingamp (Ligue 1)
L 1-0 vs. Manchester City (Champions League)
W 6-0 vs. Caen (Ligue 1)
Predicted Formations
"Lorient-Paris : les compos probables (L'Équipe) #FCLPSG #PSG pic.twitter.com/EKiTNdqq4P
— Paris No Limit™ (@ParisNoLimit) April 19, 2016"
Lorient (4-4-2): Lecomte; Gassama, Rose, Toure, Guerreiro; Bellugou; Jouffre (c), N’Dong, Mesloub, Barthelme; Waris.
PSG (4-3-3): Sirigu; Aurier, Marquinhos, Silva (c), Maxwell; Stambouli, Rabiot, Matuidi; Lucas, Ibrahimovic, Di Maria.
Player to Watch
One of Lorient's main threats on Tuesday will a player PSG know very well. As reported by Le Parisien (h/t ESPN FC's Mark Rodden), Raphael Guerreiro was a target for the French champions until he rejected them and the capital club secured Layvin Kurzawa from AS Monaco instead.
The Portugal international scored a delightful goal in a 3-1 defeat at Parc des Princes back in February and has played very well against Les Parisiens each time he has come up against them—undoubtedly one of the things that attracted the Ligue 1 leaders to him in the first place.
Guerreiro is expected to line up at left-back on Tuesday but he will be expected to get forward as often as possible. Capable of playing anywhere along the left side, his polyvalence is another one of his greatest qualities.
Assuming that Serge Aurier starts at right-back for PSG, the Paris-born Portuguese could have plenty of joy up against the Ivory Coast international because of the African's rustiness since returning from an internal suspension.
It will also be one of Guerreiro's jobs to try to get the ball to Lorient striker Majeed Waris as often as possible, as well as trying to shackle the threat posed by Lucas Moura's searing pace on the PSG right.
Les Merlus' No. 14 will be desperate to help his side to reach just their second Coupe de France final.
Key Battle
Although Waris will be a danger for the PSG defence, the Lorient back line will face a tough task of their own.
The likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani, Angel Di Maria and Lucas Moura will fill Ripoll's defenders with fear, and the outcome of their match will largely be decided by how well the hosts can muzzle their illustrious visitors.
Scoring against PSG, although difficult, will not be the hardest task that Lorient face in trying to reach the final on Tuesday.
Odds (OddsChecker)
Lorient: 42/5
PSG: 5/12
Draw: 4/1
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