PSG’s pursuit of European glory continues this week as the French giants visit Signal Iduna Park to face Borussia Dortmund for the first leg of their Round of 16 clash.
Former Dortmund boss Thomas Tuchel – now in charge of PSG – will be desperate to get one over on his former employers. But the German club will have other ideas.
Dortmund remain firmly in the Bundesliga title race following a convincing 4-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in their previous game.
Young starlets Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland both got on the scoresheet last time out, while Lucien Favre’s side limited Frankfurt to just one shot throughout the entire 90 minutes.
However, the shutout against Frankfurt was a rare clean sheet for Dortmund. Their defense has been leaking goals at an alarming rate this season, so PSG’s astonishing collection of attacking players has the ability to do some serious damage on Tuesday.
Having said that, the French club have endured problems of their own this season. Sure, the Parisians are once again running away with Ligue 1 title. But a 4-4 draw with relegation candidates Amiens on Saturday proved that PSG are nowhere near their best right now.
Still, PSG are yet to taste defeat in the Champions League this season. Tuchel’s men kicked off their campaign with a memorable 3-0 win against Real Madrid before thrashing Club Brugge and Galatasaray to finish five points clear of Los Blancos in Group A.
On the other hand, Dortmund’s route to the Round of 16 wasn’t as straightforward. But the German side must be given huge credit for qualifying from a group that contained Barcelona and Inter Milan.
The two teams last faced each other back 2010 and PSG got the better of Dortmund on that occasion. A 1-1 draw was followed by a goalless stalemate in the Europa League, meaning that PSG advanced on away goals.
Dortmund will be without midfielders Julian Brandt and Thomas Delaney this week as the pair continue to recover from injury. Captain Marco Rues is also not expected to recover in time for Tuesday.
As for PSG, Tuchel will be hoping that Neymar is available for selection following a spell on the sidelines. Presnel Kimpembe is likely to miss out after picking up an injury against Lyon.
🏆🔥 #BVBPSG@ChampionsLeague is 🔙T-2 pic.twitter.com/6oJocF5BBV— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) February 16, 2020
🏆🔥 #BVBPSG@ChampionsLeague is 🔙T-2 pic.twitter.com/6oJocF5BBV
The managers are likely to approach this game with caution as both sides look to remain in contention with the second leg still to come.
Both teams are expected to score, so Forebet predicts that we will see a low-scoring draw.