Paris Saint-Germain kick off their challenge for UEFA Champions League qualification for the 2024-25 season when they face Girona at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday. The French title holders have won six of the last seven Ligue 1 titles, while the Spanish team made a surprise run in La Liga, finishing third.
Luis Enrique’s side have made a strong start to the new Champions League season in France with four wins from four matches. Paris are scheduled to play six games in 19 days, with their next match against Arsenal, and a strong start against Girona will be essential. Losing to Bayern Munich in the 2019-20 final was Paris’ best performance in the Champions League to date, while PSG have only lost one of their 36 home matches in the Champions League since the 2012-13 season.
Girona have not had good form in their opening five La Liga games, with two wins, one draw and two losses, and Michel is keen to get his team off to the strongest possible start in the club’s first Champions League appearance. Spain’s first-time Champions League teams often perform well, with Villarreal, Sevilla and Malaga all reaching the knockout stages in their first games.
Here’s the storyline, how to watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
Date: Wednesday, September 18 | Time: 3PM ET Location: Parc des Princes – Paris, France Watch on: Paramount+ Odds: PSG -275, Draw +450, Girona +700
League Phase Schedule
PSG: Girona (Home), Arsenal (Away), PSV Eindhoven (Home), Atletico Madrid (Home), Bayern Munich (Away), Red Bull Salzburg (Away), Manchester City (Home), VfB Stuttgart (Away).
Girona: PSG (away), Feyenoord (home), Slovan Bratislava (home), PSV Eindhoven (away), Sturm Graz (away), Liverpool (home), AC Milan (away), Arsenal (home).
Team news
PSG: Gonzalo Ramos, Presnel Kimpembe and Lucas Hernandez are all absent, likely until the end of the year. Warren Zaire-Emery and Vitinha are doubts but may still be available. Lee Kang-in, Fabian Ruiz and Joao Neves are all expected to start, while Luis Enrique is likely to recall Marquinhos and William Pacho, with Milan Skriniar and Lucas Berardo potentially missing. Bradley Barkola is likely to partner Ousmane Dembele up top and either Marco Asensio or Randall Kolo-Muani.
Possible PSG XI: Donnarumma. Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes. Lee, Luis, Neves. Dembele, Kolo Muani, Barcora.
Girona: Ricardo Artero and Justin are absent, while Yangel Herrera is a doubt after missing the Barcelona match. Oriol Romeu missed the match against parent club Barcelona but is back against PSG and should play in midfield alongside Ivan Martin and John Solis, with Donny van de Beek also available if required. Abel Ruiz will remain in attack in place of Bojan Miovski and Cristian Stuani, while Portu, Bryan Hill, Viktor Tsygankov and Arnaut Danjuma will compete for places on the wing.
Possible Girona XI: Gazzaniga. Francis, Lopez, Blind, Gutierrez. Martin, Romeu, Solis. Tsygankov, Ruiz, Danjuma.
prediction
Girona will be hoping to make things tough for PSG, but the French powerhouse should start their Champions League campaign pretty well. It would be a big boost for the Parisians to win by a goal or two and keep a clean sheet. Prediction: PSG 2, Girona 0.
