Paris Saint-Germain will aim to extend their lead at the Ligue 1 summit when Angers visit the Parc des Princes on Friday night.
The two sides kick off Matchday 10 of the 2021/22 Ligue 1 campaign, with PSG sitting six points clear of second-place Lens.
Congratulations to our Parisians @KMbappe and @kimpembe_3 who won the #NationsLeague with @equipedefrance !🏆🇫🇷👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/mp0ugzTJDW— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) October 10, 2021
Congratulations to our Parisians @KMbappe and @kimpembe_3 who won the #NationsLeague with @equipedefrance !🏆🇫🇷👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/mp0ugzTJDW
Angers aren’t too far behind, though. They currently find themselves fourth in the table – eight points shy of the Parisians.
PSG suffered their first defeat of the season just before the international break, losing 2-0 to Rennes – despite seeing 68% of the ball.
Although Mauricio Pochettino’s men racked up 13 shots, the likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi failed to register a single attempt on target.
Still, PSG remain the highest scorers in the French top tier. They have netted 22 goals in nine league games this term, averaging just under 2.5 goals per game.
When you look at the bigger picture, Pochettino’s side have lost just one of their previous 11 outings across all competitions.
They have also claimed nine victories in that time, including an impressive 2-0 win over Manchester City in the Champions League.
On the flip side, Angers have lost just one of their nine Ligue 1 matches this season – picking up four wins and four draws in the process.
Angers kicked off the campaign with a five-game unbeaten streak before losing 4-1 to Nantes on Matchday 6.
They now head into Friday’s clash on a three-match unbeaten run, having claimed a win and two draws since their last loss.
Midfielder Thomas Mangani has been the start of the show for Angers this term, amassing three goals and two assists across his first nine outings.
Four other players have already scored twice for Angers this season, including 17-year-old forward Mohamed-Ali Cho.
Head-to-head: PSG crushed Angers 5-0 back in April, meaning they have won each of their previous 12 meetings in all competitions.
It is also worth noting that PSG have scored over 2.5 goals in half of their previous 14 matches against Angers, netting over 3.5 goals on five occasions.
Team news: PSG currently have three players on the sidelines – Sergio Ramos, Julian Draxler and Layvin Kurzawa.
Angers have no injury concerns at the moment, meaning head coach Gerald Baticle is likely to stick with his tried and tested staring XI.
Given PSG’s remarkable record in this fixture, a high-scoring home win is on the cards when Angers visit the capital.
Forbet predicts that PSG will once again score over 2.5 goals en route to dispatching Angers without any real problems.