Ole’s resurgent Manchester United will be no pushovers for PSG
Ahead of Manchester United’s opening Champions League game against Paris Saint-German, many have already ruled them out and predicted a loss for the Red Devils.
Manchester United will take on the Ligue 1 giants at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday night, as the race for who tops Group H officially begins.
The Old Trafford outfit have been underwhelming since the beginning of the season but can take solace from an inspired performance against Newcastle United over the weekend.
Despite falling behind after just 90 seconds, Manchester United bounced back in style as goals from Harry Maguire, Bruno Fernandes, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Marcus Rashford sealed a 4-1 win.
By contrast, PSG have been in imperious form this season. The Parisians also opened their season with successive league losses against Lens and Olympique Marseille but have not looked back since.
Thomas Tuchel has now led the side to five consecutive Ligue 1 wins. They have scored an impressive 16 goals and conceded just once in the process.
But despite PSG’s hot run of form, they won’t have it easy against Manchester United. The Red Devils have travelled to Paris without some key players, including Harry Maguire and the newly signed Edinson Cavani.
However, they still boast much depth to parade on the pitch. On Saturday, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer preferred the midfield partnership of Scott McTominay and Fred against Newcastle United.
The likes of Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic, who are usually in the starting line-up, were left out. This means the aforementioned players are fresh from being rested and can deliver when they face PSG.
Anthony Martial who was also suspended for the trip to Newcastle returns and will hope to take his chance, especially with Cavani arriving to give him competition.
It’s been 18 months since Manchester United last played a Champions League game – a 3-0 quarter-final second-leg loss to Barcelona. But this could be a good season in Europe for the Red Devils.
On paper, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and co. are the favorites, but even a less-fancied, injury-ridden Manchester United side has won here before.
And should they play with the same hunger and determination they exhibited against Newcastle, the Red Devils might just return to Manchester with a favorable result.
Ole’s resurgent Reds will be no pushovers in Paris.