It is a piece of choice to attack 2021. For its first meeting of the year, AS Saint-Étienne receives PSG this Wednesday evening (9 pm). A team against which the Greens have not won since 2008 at home in the league and which won 4-0 during its last visit at the end of 2019.
The reasons to believe it?
For this meeting, Paris Saint-Germain is deprived of its best player: Neymar. Hit in the ankle against Lyon in mid-December, the Brazilian is still too fair. But there are nine in all not to make the trip to Forez: Mauro Icardi, Layvin Kurzawa, Rafinha, Danilo Pereira, Presnel Kimpembe, Leandro Paredes, Alessandro Florenzi and Juan Bernat.
Mauricio Pochettino, the new Parisian coach, will therefore have to compose. Arrived this Saturday, the Argentinian will have had very little time to take his marks. His players resumed Sunday. Either four days after the Greens and this could be an advantage for the Stéphanois. And then we must remember that during the last confrontation between the two teams, 10 against 11, in the final of the Coupe de France in July, Saint Etienne held the dragee high to the champion of France. Faced with the cadors, the Greens have never missed this season.
“It’s always special to meet PSG abounds Claude Puel. They were able to recover freshness and we know their qualities. In addition there is a new trainer. They will therefore be very focused and with a lot of desire. What is important for us is to quickly regain cohesion and be in line with what we have put in place during the last matches.“.
Neyou and Camara will be missed
The general manager of the Greens will also have to deal with the suspensions of Mahdi Camara and Yvan Neyou. Two of the most used players in the squad and who made up “the lungs of the Greens for several weeks recognizes Claude Puel. They are among the players who have been the most consistent and the most successful since the start of the season. After that will allow other players to express themselves and show off. We will have to find a new balance“. Adil Aouchiche therefore has a good chance of starting. The little prince of Blanc-Mesnil will be keen to show his training club that he is taking a step forward. After having experienced his first tenure in a derby against Lyon , the young Lucas Gourna (17 years old) will also undoubtedly be launched into the deep end in front of the Parisian stars.
There is no need to worry – Arnaud Nordin
Unbeaten for six meetings, AS Saint-Étienne has a mattress of six points on the red zone before this meeting against Paris. Forward Arnaud Nordin is not worried about the Greens: “We have a good group. Everybody is concerned. We have seen in these last matches that we were rather pleasant to watch play. No there is no need to worry“.
Return of Retsos
Apart from the suspensions of Neyou and Camara, Claude Puel has an almost complete group. Panayiótis Rétsos absent since October 25 is back. Only Wahbi Khazri and Yvann Maçon are forfeited.