Table toppers Paris Saint Germain (PSG) will face Monaco away from home. A win will see the Ligue 1 giants gaining a solid nine-point lead against their competitor.
Both teams have played thirteen games so far and are fighting for the top position in the league. Will PSG be able to hold off Monaco or will they crumble away from home?
PSG vs Monaco clash at the top of the Ligue 1 Table
With their thirteen matches played, PSG has won a total of eleven games and played two matches to a draw. They have not lost a game since the start of the season.
Currently on a 100% home winning streak, their most recent league games saw them winning against Nantes 4-1 and a 3-0 victory over Nice. PSG visited Angers and towered away with the only five goals of the game.
Monaco, themselves, are also on a high from their 6-0 home game defeat of Guingamp. They won against Bordeaux away from home, but had to settle for a draw against Amiens. Monaco have won nine games, lost two.
While both teams have been playing well so far. PSG have the upper hand, they can afford to lose this game and still be ahead of Monaco with thirty-five points. However, with revenge on their mind from the previous season, Paris Saint Germain will want to come out of this game victorious.
Last Year
Monaco snatched the Ligue 1 title last season leaving PSG trophy-less in that competition. Both teams know each other very well and have their own victories over the other. PSG battered Monaco 5-0 in the last Coupe de France and Monaco enjoyed a 3-1 win over PSG last season.
With Monaco winning this match, we would see them climb to thirty-two points.
With PSG’s fast flowing game this season, it will be very difficult for Monaco to defeat them. PSG’s style of play has improved from the previous season. Their lethal front three of Mbappe, Cavani, and Neymar share a combined twenty 26 goals among them in the league. Monaco’s defense will have their work cut out for them. Their midfield which should comprise of their regular starters Marco Veratti, Thiago Motta and Rabiot are also well equipped to get the ball to the front three with ease and they have also never shied away from having their names on the score sheet. A solid defense line to be headed by the mighty Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Dani Alves and Kurzawa will be tasked with keeping Rafael Falcao at bay. He has been impressive for Monaco, scoring 13 goals this season. The goals have been raining for Paris this season, as they’re now at 43 goals while Monaco trails with 35.
At this time last season, Paris did not look this impressive on the pitch, neither were they getting the goals needed to win their matches. We have seen them like this before, and we knew what was the outcome. When they play with such fire, aggression and passion, we have seen them sweep Ligue 1, Coupe de France and the French Ligue Cup. This season should be no different. Monaco’s coach, Leonardo Jardim pointed out that the Ligue 1 is one of their objectives as they failed to move on in the Uefa Champions League, while Unai Emry have been quoted saying “ I have spoken to Kylian, on Sunday it will be the first time that he returns to Monaco as an opponent. This will be a big match.”
As Mbappe returns home in new colours, we should expect nothing less than him greeting them with a warm spectacle of goals, intelligent passes, excellent assists and clean challenges. This should be an exciting game, with ninety minutes of end to end action from both teams. The vociferous partisans from both teams will be cheering in full effect, and the players will have a ball at their feet to dance with for ninety minutes. A wonderful game is expected, as the world will be watching.