It will be a battle of the domestic title winners when Paris Saint-Germain square off against Barcelona in the 1st leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday night and the match has all the makings of a potential European classic.
Paris Saint-Germain Betting News
There was a lot of optimism among the PSG fans when Unai Emery was appointed as manager of the club during the summer and while the Spaniard is doing a fairly decent job at the moment, many would have arguably expected a bit better from him.
PSG usually would have had the Ligue 1 title wrapped up by now but they currently lie in second place behind Monaco and having spurned a chance to earn top spot in their Champions League group, the French champions have now been handed a notoriously difficult test against Barcelona in the Round of 16.
It is clear that Emery was installed as manager by the club’s wealthy owners to excel in the Champions League and if the Parisians are to put forward their candidacy as genuine contenders, beating Barcelona would surely be a good way to start.
Javier Pastore is likely to miss the clash due to injury while Thiago Motta will not be available because of suspension.
Barcelona Betting News
Barcelona have not quite enjoyed the best of campaigns domestically this term and they have a fair deal of work to do in order to be able to surpass rivals Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga table.
Nonetheless, Barcelona have done exceedingly well to reach the final of the Copa Del Rey and manager Luis Enrique will surely be keen on his side to continue their good cup form in the Champions League as well.
The Catalans’ opponents in the Round of 16 is PSG and it goes without saying that the 2014/15 European champions will have to do well in order to claim triumph over the French giants.
Marc Cardona, Rafinha, Arda Turan, Javier Mascherano and Aleix Vidal Parreu are all injury doubts ahead of the game for Barcelona.
Paris Saint-Germain vs Barcelona Match Betting Prediction
PSG and Barcelona have been pitted against each other on a regular basis in the Champions League over the years and it has been the Spanish side who have usually come out on top.
Given Emery’s expertise in knockout round competitions, Barcelona will surely find it tough this time around but they should be able to get a positive result on Tuesday night by earning a score draw.
