PSG vs Lorient preview

March 19, 2015
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

PSG vs MonacoHaving missed a perfect opportunity to climb to the top of the Ligue 1 standings, Paris Saint-Germain have got to beat Lorient in order to keep their title hopes alive.

Les Merlus recorded a very important win over Caen to escape the danger zone and arrive at Parc des Princes without any pressure.

Paris Saint-Germain have been on a major uptrend ever since the wealthy Qatari owners arrived at the club, but while the team enjoyed plenty of success on domestic stage, they failed to live to their potential in Europe’s elite competition.

The Saints did reach the Champions League quarter-finals two times in a row, but only to be eliminated despite outplaying the opposition.

Another early exit appeared on the cards as they were 2-1 down on aggregate and playing with ten men against Chelsea, but Laurent Blanc’s charges did brilliantly to eliminate the Blues and qualify for the last eight.

The difficult match at Stamford Bridge appears to have taken its toll on the players as they then suffered a 3-2 loss to Bordeaux, thus allowing leaders Lyon to increase their advantage to two points.

PSG now face a must-win game against Lorient at Parc des Princes and they can be backed at 1.83 (5/6) for a half-time/full-time win.

Yohan Cabaye was the latest first team player to suffer an injury and he joins Lucas Moura, Marquinhos and Serge Aurier on the sidelines. David Luiz is suspended.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is available as he await a decision on a potential five-match ban for criticizing the match officials after the Bordeaux loss.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-3): Sirigu – van der Wiel, Silva, Camara, Maxwell – Verratti, Motta, Rabiot – Cavani, Ibrahimovic, Pastore.

Lorient are an established Ligue 1 side that usually manage to escape the difficult relegation tussle, although things haven’t gone according to plan this season.

Les Merlus sat just two points above the bottom three following back to back defeats to Evian and Saint Etienne, but they have since improved their survival hopes.

Lorient recorded a very important triumph over relegation rivals Caen after coming from a goal behind and they are now five points clear of the relegation zone.

It is the trio of talented forwards Ayew, Jeannot and Guerreiro that has played a key role in helping les Merlus stay above the bottom three, and the visitors will be hoping to cause some problems to PSG defenders as well.

The problem is that Rafa Guerreiro has suffered a muscle strain and is set to miss the clash in Paris, but Didier Ndong is back from suspension.

Mathieu Coutadeur and Valentin Lavigne are out injured, while Raffidine Abdullah and Mathias Autret face fitness tests.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Lecomte – Pedrinho, Lautoa, Bellugou, Le Goff – Philippoteaux, Abdullah, Mesloub, Barthelme – Ayew, Jeannot.

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