Champions League is starting. In the first round of the club tournament, the eyes of many fans will turn to France, where PSG and London's Arsenal will clash their weapons in Paris.
PSG - "Arsenal"
Tournament: UEFA Champions League
Stadium: "Parc des Princes" (Paris)
Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)
Date and time: 2016-09-13, 21:45
Arsene Wenger hopes that his coached team has matured even more and can surprise even the most skeptical "Gunners" fans this season.
The Frenchman dreams of repeating the 2006 journey when the English reached the final of the tournament, where after a fierce battle, they lost to the Barcelona team.
However, it's too early to think about the final. "Arsenal" first needs to break the curse - for the past six seasons, they have failed to progress among the 16 strongest clubs of the Old Continent.
"For now, all our focus is on the upcoming match. I have led the club in more than 170 matches in the Champions League and I want us to play well in the meeting in France.
Last year, we took second place in the group, losing to Munich's Bayern, although we beat them in front of our fans. The Germans simply played more consistently.
Against PSG, we need to achieve a good result if we want to win Group A," - said A. Wenger before the match.
"Before, I had to lead many younger players and we didn't have enough resources. But now "Arsenal" represents more experienced footballers. Their age ranges from 24-30 years, which is a good combination of physical strength and experience," - added the Frenchman, who hoped for better results.
Interesting facts
- The teams played against each other only once in the 1993/94 season, when in the UEFA Cup semifinals "Arsenal" won with an aggregate score of 2:1.
- PSG can boast an impressive game in front of their fans. In the last 39 European tournament matches, they have suffered only one defeat (lost to Barcelona 1:3 in April 2015). The series: 25 wins, 13 draws.
- "Arsenal" continues an excellent series against French teams in European tournaments (8 wins, 4 draws). Currently - seven consecutive wins.
- English teams cannot boast success against PSG at the "Parc des Princes" arena. In seven matches - only one win (Chelsea won 3:0 in September 2004).
- PSG, revitalized by Arab money, will start their fifth consecutive and ninth total Champions League season. Only "Lyon" can boast a higher number (14).
- in the last 4 seasons, PSG was eliminated from the tournament in the quarterfinals
- last year, PSG showed a particularly solid defense in the group stage and conceded only one goal in six matches
Injuries
Due to various injuries, "Gunners" will not have Per Mertesacker, Gabriel, Danny Welbeck, Carl Jenkinson, and Aaron Ramsey available.
French champions will miss Maxwell, Javier Pastore, and Serge Aurier.
Predicted starting line-ups:
PSG: Trapp; Meunier, Marquinhos, Silva, Kurzawa; Motta, Matuidi, Verratti; Moura, Cavani, Ben Arfa.
"Arsenal": Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Cazorla, Xhaka, Coquelin; Sanchez, Perez, Ozil.
Prediction
At the moment, "Arsenal" is showing better form and can take advantage of the hosts' weakness in defense. Meanwhile, the English team will be disrupted in defense by the newcomer Mustafi.
Both teams have a strong attacking line and are likely to score at least one goal each.
"Arsenal" will win 2:1.
