CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Mbappé to the rescue for PSG?
After two back-to-back defeats in the French Cup and Ligue 1, PSG will look to quell tension as they face the Bundesliga giants.
PSG continue to strive for the holy grail that is the Champions League trophy. Memories of March’s defeat to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu are still fresh in the mind at the club and Al Khelaïfi and Qatar are still driven by the biggest prize in domestic European football. Despite boasting a striking trio of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and World Cup winner Leo Messi, the Parisian giants are in something of a slump.
PSG have already lost as many games this season as they did in all of 2022 and come into the Bayern clash after defeat in Ligue 1 at the weekend away to Monaco which followed up a French Cup midweek exit at the hands of Marseille. Tonight, they face a Bayern team that beat PSG in their only UCL final with PSG youth player, Kingsley Coman bagging the only goal in the closed doors event in Lisbon in 2020.
There may be some light at the end of the tunnel for the Ligue 1 side as Mbappé completed a training session with the group on Monday and is included in the matchday squad. The French striker sounded alarm bells at the beginning of the month as he limped for the pitch in Montpellier and has made a speedy recovery from a muscular problem. It’s expected that PSG boss Galtier will use the striker from the bench despite his constant affirmation that he refuses to take a chance on Mbappe unless he is 100% fit.
Bayern Munich are still without Sadio Mané but go into the game having scored 11 goals in their last three games. Head coach Nagelsmann looks more confident than ever but the first leg is expected to be a tense affair with little quarter given and the matter will ultimately be resolved at the Allianz Arena on 8 March.