Paris Saint-Germain will attempt to make it 18 wins from their opening 20 Ligue 1 matches when they play host to Rennes at Parc des Princes on Sunday.
Thomas Tuchel’s side are cruising towards the league title, with a 10-point advantage over second-placed Lille, but with Manchester United looming in the Champions League will be hopeful of turning in a polished performance in front of their home support.
Rennes, meanwhile, have been one of France’s form teams over the course of the last two months, reinvigorated by the efforts of Julien Stephan, who has impressed since taking over at the beginning of December.
| Game | Paris Saint-Germain vs Rennes |
| Date | Sunday, January 27 |
| Time | 9pm GMT / 4pm ET |
| Stream (US) | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on BT Sport 1 and livestreamed on BT Sport Live.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| BT Sport 1 | BT Sport Live |
Squads & Team News
| Position | PSG players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Areola, Cibois, Buffon |
| Defenders | Silva, Kimpembe, Kehrer, Meunier, Alves, Bernat, Kurzawa, Marquinhos, N'Soki |
| Midfielders | Nkunku, Draxler |
| Forwards | Mbappe, Cavani, Di Maria, Choupo-Moting, Diaby, Jese |
Neymar will be missing after sustaining a foot injury in the 2-0 Coupe de France win over Strasbourg. Estimates vary wildly as to how long he could be out for, with anything from eight days to six months estimated.
Marco Verratti is still sidelined while Presnel Kimpembe and Layvin Kurzawa are also doubts, though the former is expected to make it.
Rotation will take place in the side, with Kylian Mbappe set to start after he was left out to rest in midweek.
Adrien Rabiot is back training with the first team again but will continue to be frozen out of action due to his contract uncertainty. Dani Alves, therefore, could continue in the centre of the park.
Possible PSG starting XI: Buffon; Meunier, Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Bernat; Diaby, Dani Alves, Draxler, Di Maria; Mbappe, Cavani
| Position | Rennes players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Koubek, Gertmonas |
| Defenders | Gelin, Da Silva, Mexer, Nyamsi, Doumbia, Diallo, Traore, Zeffane |
| Midfielders | Bourigeaud, Grenier, Lea Siliki, Poha, Janvier, Ben Arfa, Hunou, Gboho |
| Forwards | Sarr, Del Castillo, Niang, Siebatcheu |
Star man Ismaila Sarr missed the midweek Coupe de France win over Saint-Pryve Saint-Hilaine due to tooth trouble but should be back in the fold for this encounter.
Similarly, Hatem Ben Arfa can expect to feature against his former club and will feel he has a point to prove in this match.
Abdoulaye Diallo, Rennes’ first-choice keeper, is set to miss out along with left-backs Ramy Bensebaini and Ludovic Baal. Midfielder James Lea-Siliki filled in there last week but a debut could be handed to Souleyman Doumbia.
Jakob Johansson is missing.
Romain Danze and Rafik Guitane remain long-term absentees.
Possible Rennes starting XI: Koubek; Traore, Mexer, Da Silva, Doumbia ; Sarr, Grenier, Andre, Bourigeaud ; Ben Arfa, Niang
Betting & Match Odds
Paris Saint-Germain are massive 1/5 favourites to win this game, with Rennes priced at 12/1 by bet365. A draw is offered at 6/1.
Match Preview
Getty Images
Paris Saint-Germain are looking far ahead of Sunday’s Ligue 1 fixture with Rennes. A victory would give them a 13-point advantage at the summit of the division, which will be enough to secure them another league title, but it is Manchester United in the Champions League they are really focusing on.
With that in mind, the midweek injury that Neymar sustained against Strasbourg has the potential to be a catastrophe, with the Brazilian’s absence from their last-16 defeat against Real Madrid last year notable.
The forward won few fans against Racing, who felt that he was unnecessarily showboating with the score 1-0 on Wednesday.
“We’re not here to joke around,” Strasbourg midfielder Anthony Goncalves said after the match. “So he shouldn’t come blubbering about it afterwards.”
Further tests will be required to assess just how serious the injury is, but there is a fear that it could end his campaign, just as a similar problem around this time last year did.
Meanwhile, PSG will attempt to maintain their perfect home record in Ligue 1, with 10 wins from 10 matches thus far, 37 goals scored and only three conceded.
If Rennes needed any warning of how potentially devastating the capital side are, they need only have looked at last weekend’s spectacular 9-0 destruction of Guingamp.
Julien Stephan’s side, however, are different beasts to their Breton neighbours. They have lost only one of their 11 matches which the rookie coach has overseen, though ominously that was a fixture against Guingamp.
With Hatem Ben Arfa, a player frozen out for 18 months in the capital, in tow, they will be quietly optimistic at causing an upset, having won 2-0 in Paris last May.
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