Paris Saint-Germain will hope to register a second consecutive win in their Champions League group H when they travel to Israel to play Maccabi Haifa on Wednesday night.
The Les Parisians ran out 2-1 winners over Juventus at the Parc des Princes in their Champions League group stage encounter. They head into the European fixture on the back of a narrow 1-0 win over Brest in Ligue 1.
Christophe Galtier’s side could put a foot in round 16 of the elite European competition with a victory against Maccabi Haifa.
Paris Saint-Germain Team News
Christophe Galtier will be without the services of defender Presnel Kimpembe, who gave away a penalty and suffered a hamstring injury in the win over Brest at the weekend. Barring Renato Sanches, who faces a late fitness test for an adductor problem, the PSG boss has an otherwise full-strength squad to choose from against Maccabi Haifa.
Predicted PSG Lineup vs Maccabi Haifa (3-4-1-2)
Goalkeeper
Gianluigi Donnarumma should start in the PSG goal against Maccabi Haifa, hoping to register a clean sheet after missing out in the Champions League opening win over Juventus.
Defence
Christophe Galtier is unlikely to turn away from the 3-4-1-2 formation that has brought the best out of so many players. Sergio Ramos will keep his position in the back three with Marquinhos and Danilo Pereira starting alongside him.
The defensive trio of Ramos, Marquinhos and Danilo will need to be on their toes for the entire 90 minutes to shut out a strong Maccabi Haifa side.
Midfield
Vitinha and Marco Verratti have built a strong understanding in the middle of the park in a short space of time. Galtier will expect Vitinha and Verratti to take control of the game as quickly as possible, although it won’t be easy in a hostile crowd at the Sammy Offer Stadium.
Achraf Hakimi will keep his place at right wing-back intact, and the Moroccan international will look to negate Dolev Haziza’s threat on his flank. Nuno Mendes is likely to get the nod over Juan Bernat at left wing-back.
Attack
PSG’s creator-in-chief, Lionel Messi is an undisputed starter for Galtier’s side. Due to his ability to hurt the opponents in one blink of an eye, the Argentinean playmaker could be the difference maker for the visitors in Israel on Wednesday.
Messi will hope to create chances for Kylian Mbappe and Neymar up front. Mbappe and Neymar, who are in good touch of late, can make life difficult for the Maccabi defenders with their burst of pace and unpredictability.
The likes of Carlos Soler, Fabian Ruiz and Pablo Sarabia could get involved in the latter stages of the game if required.
