Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco meet for the third time in six weeks when they face off at the Parc des Princes in Ligue 1 on Friday night.
Monaco's defeat on matchday eight in the Champions League means they will join PSG in the playoffs which start next week, meaning this game has been moved forward to allow both clubs the maximum possible preparation time for those ties.
Match preview
© Imago
PSG continue to saunter to the Ligue 1 title, thrashing their upcoming Champions League opponents Brest 5-2 on the road last weekend, taking them to 50 points for the season - only the sixth time a team has amassed as many after just 20 games.
Four of the previous five occasions were also courtesy of PSG sides, as well as Lyon in the 2006-07 season, and on each occasion, those teams went on to win the title.
The win over Brest means they remain unbeaten domestically this season, and they are still 10 points clear of Marseille at the top.
It is their work in the final third which has seen them pull clear at the top, and they will also look to extend a run of scoring in 38 of the 40 home games Luis Enrique has taken in charge of the club.
Over the past 13 games, PSG have been unstoppable, winning 12 and scoring 36 in the process, including a 2-0 win over Le Mans in the Coupe de France last 16 on Tuesday night.
Monaco are up next, and they have become familiar opponents of late, locking horns in the league shortly before Christmas, and in the Trophee des Champions at the start of the year, with the Parisians winning both.
PSG have not faced a club more often than Monaco (113), and they have become dominant in this fixture, scoring 27 in their last nine meetings at home, and losing just twice here since the Qatari takeover.
Monaco's record against the other teams in the top-five this season has been their undoing in the race for the automatic Champions League places.
© Imago
A draw against Lille is the only point Adi Hutter's side have taken in those four meetings this season, losing the other three against Nice, Marseille and upcoming opponents PSG, despite leading in all of them.
Away form is also cause for concern, because Monaco are on their worst run on the road for over five years, having won none of their last four away from the Stade Louis II.
An early red card did not help in their 3-0 loss at Inter Milan last midweek either, seeing them fail to finish in the Champions League's top eight, and adding two more games to their schedule against Benfica this month, but that defeat at San Siro is the only game they have not won in their last four.
The response to that chastening defeat in Italy was to come from behind and beat Auxerre 4-2 last weekend, with new signing Mika Biereth scoring a hat trick to keep them in the top three for the time being.
Clubs continue to jostle for position in and around the Champions League places though, with Monaco in third, three points behind Marseille, a point clear of Lille, and three ahead of Nice entering the weekend.
Team News
© Imago
Monaco's defence, and notably their full-backs will have to be at the top of their game to stop Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele here, with the two in absolutely scintillating form of late.
Dembele has scored back-to-back hat tricks, with 14 goals in eight games, while Barcola has notched up 10 goal contributions across his last seven games, including the clincher against Le Mans in midweek.
After letting Marco Asensio, Milan Skriniar and Randal Kolo Muani leave on loan towards the end of the transfer window, PSG are now facing a few injury worries, and particularly in midfield, with Joao Neves and Warren Zaire-Emery doubtful.
Biereth's hat trick last weekend means he is set to be Monaco's starting striker ahead of Breel Embolo, with Folarin Balogun and George Ilenikhena also out injured.
Aleksandr Golovin was forced off at half time in that win over Auxerre and is believed to be carrying a minor injury, while hamstring injuries are also keeping defensive duo Jordan Teze and Wilfried Singo on the sidelines at present.
Singo's absence means there will be no faceoff with Gianluigi Donnarumma again, after the Monaco man inadvertently raked his studs down the face of the PSG keeper in the reverse fixture, leaving the Italian needing numerous stitches.
Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:
Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Fabian Ruiz, Lee, Vitinha; Barcola, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Majecki; Vanderson, Kehrer, Salisu, Mawissa; Camara, Zakaria; Akliouche, Minamino, Ben Seghir; Biereth
We say: Paris Saint-Germain 3-2 Monaco
This PSG side is almost unrecognisable to the one that was struggling to string two results together earlier in the campaign, and they will fancy themselves at extending their unbeaten run in the league this season here, especially after recording two wins over Monaco in the last six weeks.
However, Monaco are the only club to have won more than 40 games against PSG in their history (48), and have scored on 12 of their last 13 trips to the Parc des Princes, so they should certainly offer a stern test, even if they do just fall short.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
