PSG were rocked by an unexpected 1-0 defeat away from home at Lens in Thursday night’s Ligue 1 clash, but the hosts return to their Parc des Princes, with manager, Thomas Tuchel desperately scrambling for a fit squad.
The German coach was without seven first-team players for the clash with Lens, including regular front line Mbappe, Neymar and Di Maria, while striking deputy Icardi would have featured but was also in quarantine after contracting coronavirus.
Keylor Navas, Marquinhos and Leandro Paredes endured the same fate leaving Tuchel to put together a side already short of options. For all their wealth, PSG have a modest pool of players and require reinforcements in a number of areas with former skipper Thiago Silva leaving a glaring hole in the backline.
In more positive news for the ex-Borussia Dortmund boss, Marco Verratti is now fully fit. The Pescara native makes the Parisians tick and there will be increased importance on the PSG number 6 to lead the hosts to victory.
Julian Draxler will start as a makeshift striker. The winger by trade is wanted by new Premier League outfit Leeds and could yet move before October for regular game time.
Marseille closed out their campaign last season in Ligue 1 in positive fashion as the visitors lost just once in their last 17 matches which helped them grab the runners-up spot behind PSG before the season was halted.
The visitors also showed strong form on their travels too as they finished the last term with an eight-match unbeaten sequence under their belts on the road and included six victories.
Like their Sunday’s hosts, Marseille have played just the one match so far in this new Ligue 1 season but the visitors grabbed the all-important three points as they registered a 3-2 win away from home at Brest to start their season off in style.
Four of Marseille’s last seven away matches in Ligue 1 have seen both teams score and although PSG have held the upper hand over them in recent previous exchanges, winning each of the last five clashes, Marseille will be boosted by PSG’s absence of stars in their squad for this upcoming encounter.
Marseille know they won’t get a better chance to upstage their fierce rivals than this Sunday’s fixture and goals from both teams could unfold here as the playing field shifts to a more balanced scene.