Despite enjoying a marvellous victory over Arsenal in the Champions League, Monaco will have to quickly shift their focus back to French Ligue 1 as they play host to holders Paris Saint-Germain. The Saints returned to winning ways by defeating Toulouse and they need to stay on the same track if they want to keep up with leaders Lyon.

Impressive win at the Emirates

Following one year of heavy spending, Monaco chiefs decided to make a U-turn in their transfer strategy, cashing in on James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao, while turning their attention towards talented yet inexpensive footballers. And while they obviously experienced some problems at the start of the current season, the Principality club hit the ground running in early December and have been impressive ever since. Monaco climbed to fourth in the league standings and are now very close to Champions League positions, while they not only won the top place in their CL group but also enjoyed a 3-1 victory over Arsenal in the first leg of the first knockout stage to come on the verge of quarter-finals. What is even more impressive is that they recorded the memorable win without several star players and they now go into the crunch tie with Paris Saint-Germain in excellent spirits. Monaco have based their recent results on rock-solid defence, which conceded mere three goals in last thirteen matches, so no doubt the hosts will again try to keep things tight at the back and wait for their chance to hit PSG on the break.

Jeremy Toulalan returns from a European suspension, while Aymen Abdennour is suspended and Riccardo Carvalho, Andrea Raggi and Lacina Traore are injured.

Unlucky draw with Chelsea

Unlike their next opponents, Paris Saint-Germain have continued to spend considerable amounts of money on new players, but coach Laurent Blanc now faces a tough task of keeping his star-studded squad happy. The Saints quickly established domestic domination, winning two Ligue 1 titles in a row, while they showed a great deal of promise in the Champions League as well. After twice narrowly missing out on semi-final berths, PSG completely outclassed Premier League leaders Chelsea in the first leg of their last 16 stage tie, but had to settle for a 1-1 draw in the end. The Saints have since turned their attention towards their league campaign, where they still trail leaders Lyon by two points, with Adrian Rabiot brace helping them defeat Toulouse at Parc des Princes. But, with superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic and important attacker Lucas Moura both missing the trip to Stade Louis II, PSG could struggle to defeat in-form Monaco, especially having failed to score more than one goal in each of their last four matches on the road.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic starts a two-match ban, while Lucas Moura, Yohan Cabaye, Serge Aurier and Thiago Motta are out injured.

Verdict

Monaco’s back line have been thoroughly impressive for some three months now and their job will be made easier by the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lucas Moura. Meanwhile, the Saints are not exactly firing on all cylinders, meaning a low-scoring match is expected at Stade Louis II.

Top pick: Under 2.5 goals   1.55 (5/9) @ Ladbrokes

Alternative pick 1: Half-time Draw   2.00 (1/1) @ Betfair

Alternative pick 2: Under 1.5 goals   2.70 (17/10) @ BetVictor