Champions League
2014-09-30 - Paris Saint Germain vs FC Barcelona
A Sports Betting Pick by Cruiser
Football : UEFA Champions League
Tuesday 30th September 2014 – Kickoff time 20:45
This is the match everyone is waiting to watch as Paris Saint Germain and Barcelona go head to head and both have ambitions to win the Champions League at the end of it.
Both clubs are unbeaten since the start of the season but PSG have a passion for drawing their games. PSG drew their first Champions League match while Barcelona managed to win theirs. Last season they met in the quarter-finals of which they could not be separated as both games ended in stale mates. However Barcelona went to the semi-finals due to the away goals rule.
PSG have a really good side this season and could go far in the competition. But their start to the season did not go as expected. They are not leading their domestic championship even as they are in fourth place with one match played less and are behind the leaders by five points in the standings.
The good news for PSG is they are still unbeaten and but their five draws in the championship meant they have some catching up to do. In their opening Champions League match, PSG drew with Ajax away from home. They did take the lead in that match, and also the same story with Rennes and Lyon in the championship, but conceded and had to settle for a draw in that game.
Last weekend against Toulouse, PSG were behind but managed to come back and settle for a 1-1 draw. It is likely that Ibrahimovic will return for this match despite missing their last two games with injury as Coach Laurent Blanc is expected to name his strongest side here.
FC Barcelona created headlines when they did not conceded a single goal in their first six matches in La Liga, something which no other team has managed to do before. They also kept a clean sheet in the Champions League which means they have not conceded in seven matches now.
However, Barca's 100% record in La Liga came to an end after they could only manage a goalless draw against Malaga away from the Nou Camp. It was a poor performance by them and that was also something similar when they could only beat APOEL by 1-0 in their opening match of the Champions League at home.
But it was business as usual last weekend as Barcelona thrashed Granada 6-0 at home last weekend in the La Liga. Brazilian Neymar were at his best and the same was with Lionel Messi. It waits to be seen if their defence can keep another clean sheet here against PSG.
As for Barca's team news, Mathieu and Mascherano could get a chance to start here, but Jordi Alba will start on the left flank. Iniesta is expected to return to midfield.
The BETTING VERDICT :
This will be a tough test for Barcelona. Expect PSG not to get beaten here so go for them and accept the 1/2 ball in this match.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Paris Saint Germain 1-1 FC Barcelona
