Paris Saint-Germain head to Turin to play Juventus on Wednesday evening in their final Champions League group-stage clash.
Les Parisians are still unbeaten in the Champions League campaign with three wins and two draws, both 1-1 against Benfica. They dismantled Maccabi Haifa 7-2 at Parc des Princes last week, thus, confirming their spot in the knockout rounds of the tournament.
PSG and Benfica are on similar points and vying for the top spot in Group H, but Christopher Galtier’s side simply need to match or better their opponents’ result on matchday six to qualify as table toppers.
Paris Saint-Germain Team News
Christophe Galtier has no injury concerns as such ahead of the encounter against Juventus.
Danilo Pereira recently made his return to training from a hamstring injury, but it is tough to see the Portuguese being risked from the onset in midweek.
Marco Verratti is available for selection after serving a one-game ban in the 7-2 win over Maccabi Haifa, but Neymar picked up his third booking of the tournament last week and will miss out here.
Predicted PSG Lineup vs Juventus (3-4-2-1)
Goalkeeper
Gianluigi Donnarumma must be raring to keep a clean sheet on his return to Italy after conceding thrice against Troyes in Ligue 1 at the weekend.
Defence
Christophe Galtier will certainly now consider reverting to a back three after a couple of really shaky defensive displays. In a 3-4-2-1 formation, Marquinhos will be recalled into the PSG lineup to form the three-man defence alongside Sergio Ramos and Presnel Kimpembe.
The experienced trio of Ramos, Marquinhos and Kimpembe must maintain PSG’s defensive shape well throughout the 90 minutes and try to keep a clean sheet against Juventus.
Midfield
Marco Verratti walks back into the PSG lineup after serving his suspension last week. The diminutive Italian has forged a solid understanding with Vitinha in the centre of the pitch, helping PSG dominate a lot of games this season. The onus will be on the duo to control the tempo of play for the Parisian outfit.
Achraf Hakimi will hope to enjoy a productive night from the right wing-back position, while Nuno Mendes tries to impress from the opposite flank in the PSG lineup.
Attack
It is difficult to look past the famed attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar when picking the team but with Neymar suspended, Galtier may hand Carlos Soler a start in a more attacking role in the PSG lineup.
Messi and Mbappe have been in excellent form this term and should be PSG’s biggest outlets for goals against Juventus. Galtier could turn to the likes of Pablo Sarabia, Hugo Ekitike, Renato Sanches and Fabian Ruiz while freshening things up in the second half of the game.