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Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain return to action on Friday night, when they will welcome Toulouse to the Parc des Princes. Luis Enrique is under increasing pressure in the French capital due to their awful start in the Champions League, but there can be no complaints about how the Parisians have started domestically. © Imago Since the Qatari takeover at PSG, one thing has been abundantly clear - continental success is the main priority.
That is something current manager Enrique is not providing, as PSG face the prospect of missing out on the knockout stages of the Champions League entirely. At the halfway stage, PSG are 25th, with only the top 24 progressing to the knockouts, following a late 2-1 defeat to Atletico Madrid on matchday four. With Bayern Munich on the horizon in midweek, it will be no surprise if their upcoming league encounter against Toulouse is something of an afterthought, considering they are in a comfortable position domestically, sitting six points clear of second-placed Monaco .
PSG were able to maintain that lead at the top by beating Angers 4-2 before the international break, a week after edging past Lens 1-0, keeping a rare home clean sheet in the process. That means that the hosts now have the opportunity to keep clean sheets in back-to-back home games for the first time in over a year, but to do so, they would need to improve on their results against Toulouse from last season. Carles Martinez 's side are the only team who have beaten PSG in Ligue 1 in 40 matches, after doing so in May at the end of last season.
That saw Toulouse take four points off the champions in 2023-24, and means the Violets could remain unbeaten against PSG in three straight games for the first time in over 15 years. It is not beyond the realm of possibility that it could happen again either, given Toulouse's recent form in Ligue 1. © Imago Consecutive wins over Montpellier, Reims and Rennes all without conceding means Toulouse have the opportunity here to win four straight league games for the first time since 2010, and the club have also not kept four straight clean sheets in over 11 years.
It has been an amazing turnaround for Martinez's men of late, with the three wins coming after securing just one in their opening eight matches of the campaign. Toulouse had just six points from a possible 24, and were in the relegation zone, but now they find themselves just two points off the European places, putting a healthy buffer between themselves and the bottom three. Rekindling good form on the road has been key, because Toulouse have now won nine matches on the road in Ligue 1 in 2024 - the most the club has enjoyed in a calendar year in their history.
Tapping into that form will be crucial in their next two matches on the road, because after this trip to the champions, Martinez will then take his men to Monaco in their next away outing. © Imago Heavy rotation could be on the cards for PSG, given the importance of their clash with Bayern in the Champions League in midweek. Marquinhos should be fresh for that one considering he will serve a one-match ban here, and will watch the match on the sidelines alongside injured trio Presnel Kimpembe , Lucas Hernandes and Goncalo Ramos .
Willian Pacho did miss the win over Angers, and even though he was fit to play for Ecuador during the international break, arriving back late from South America means he will be a doubt here. Ousmane Dembele should be fine to feature despite not joining up with the France squad, and even though Randal Kolo Muani did, his poor recent form may see him start on the bench again, with Enrique preferring to go with a false nine recently. After another excellent performance last time out in the 2-0 success at Rennes, Toulouse may remain unchanged here.
Danish defender Rasmus Nicolaisen is the only injury worry at present, but the visitors will have to check the fitness of Mark McKenzie (USA) and Gabriel Suazo (Chile) who will both report back late from international duty. Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup: Safonov; Hakimi, Lucas Beraldo, Skriniar, Zague; Joao Neves, Mayulu, Fabian Ruiz; Doue, Asensio, Barcola Toulouse possible starting lineup: Restes; Kamanzi, Sidibe, Cresswell, Akdag, Donnum; Casseres, Sierro; Aboukhlal, King, Gboho Toulouse's win here in May was their first at the Parc des Princes since 2008, and while they also held PSG to a draw in the reverse earlier last season, repeating the feat again will be unlikely, even if the hosts do rotate heavily. Even when Enrique has shuffled the pack slightly for matches in Ligue 1, they have looked even more impressive than when their full-strength side has featured in Europe, so another win is on the cards here.
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