A mouth-watering showdown between two title-chasing sides in Ligue 1 will take place at the Parc des Princes on Sunday evening as Paris Saint-Germain do battle with Lyon.
The hosts currently lead the way at the top of the rankings, whereas Lyon are only two points behind PSG as they sit third, with Lille sandwiched in between the two sides.
Match preview
© Reuters
Not often will you hear an athlete say "we cannot play with this guy" with regards to an official of the game, but those words spoken by Kylian Mbappe told fans everything they needed to know about PSG's encounter with Istanbul Basaksehir on Tuesday, with both sets of players walking off after the fourth official Sebastian Coltescu was accused of racism.
The two teams returned to the pitch the next night to finish what they had started, and off-the-pitch issues aside, PSG stormed to a 5-1 win over the Turkish outfit to round off their Champions League group-stage campaign on a high note.
Mbappe netted twice on the night while Neymar bagged a hat-trick for the Parisiens, who will now be focused on cementing their position atop the rankings in the French top flight before the last 16 of the Champions League takes place.
Thomas Tuchel's side have experienced a couple of blips against Monaco and Bordeaux recently, but the champions cruised to a 3-1 win over Montpellier in their most recent league outing, with Mbappe netting his 100th goal for the club in that encounter at the Stade de la Mosson.
PSG could potentially find themselves down in second before they step out onto the Parc des Princes turf, with second-placed Lille facing off against Bordeaux a few hours before, and Tuchel's side will have a fight on their hands to avoid being knocked off their perch this weekend.
© Reuters
Lyon have simply swept aside the competition in recent weeks and already look set for a return to the European stage, something which did not look all that likely earlier in the campaign.
Les Gones are one of only two teams in the top flight to have won their last four on the bounce - the other being Marseille - and Lyon could also find themselves at the top of the pile should they somehow prevail at the Parc des Princes in gameweek 14.
Rudi Garcia has led his team to victories over Saint-Etienne, Angers, Reims and Metz over the past few weeks, with the 4-3-3 working to great effect for Lyon as they look to mount a title charge and end PSG's reign of dominance.
Metz and Lyon both finished the game with 10 men last Sunday as John Boye and Rayan Cherki saw red in the dying embers, but the tie was dead and buried long before then thanks to an opener from Memphis Depay and a double from Karl Toko Ekambi - his sixth and seventh goals of the campaign.
PSG and Lyon last met in July's Coupe de la Ligue final - with Tuchel's men winning 6-5 on penalties in that one - and Les Gones have not prevailed on the Parisiens' turf in the league since 2007.
Paris Saint-Germain Ligue 1 form: WWWLDW
Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions): LWDWWW
Lyon Ligue 1 form: WDWWWW
Team News
© Reuters
PSG have far fewer injury concerns now than they did at the start of the season, and there is optimism that Julian Draxler may be able to make his return to action in this one.
Juan Bernat is the only long-term concern for the champions, but Mauro Icardi and Pablo Sarabia will not be ready to take to the field just yet.
Tuchel has opted for an unorthodox 5-3-2 in PSG's last two matches but may switch to a back four here, which would allow Moise Kean to come back into the fold and look to continue his impressive start to life in PSG colours.
As for Lyon, Cherki is suspended for this one following his red card in the win over Metz, but the 17-year-old was never likely to start here.
Thiago Mendes returns from a suspension of his own and may come into the midfield to provide some more stability against the rampant attack of PSG.
Garcia will be counting his blessings with no players out injured for this tie, which is just what the doctor ordered for Lyon, who will attempt to defy the odds in the French capital.
Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:
Navas; Florenzi, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Kurzawa; Gueye, Verratti, Paredes; Mbappe, Kean, Neymar
Lyon possible starting lineup:
Lopes; De Sciglio, Denayer, Marcelo, Cornet; Mendes, Aouar, Paqueta; Kadewere, Depay, Toko Ekambi
We say: Paris Saint-Germain 3-2 Lyon
Despite easing past Montpellier and Istanbul recently, PSG would be making a fatal mistake if they go into their bout with Lyon thinking that they have already won. Les Gones are in a terrific place themselves and the confidence will be sky high in the visitors' camp right now, so fans should strap in for a thriller at the Parc des Princes, one which we ultimately expect Tuchel's men to just about prevail in.
