CPEL (8)

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Match Details:

Date: 17 February, 2021

Time: 01:30 AM (IST)

Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona

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Preview:

Champions League’s first knockout stage tie will see FC Barcelona welcome Paris Saint-Germain at home. The hosts will be entering the match on back of a victory against Deportive Alaves where their talisman Lionel Messi stole the show. PSG will also come on the back of a victory against Nice. Both the sides will want to have that first leg cushion, and the Parisians in particular, will at least want to get valuable away goals.

The Catalonian side will surely want to take a look at the history books before this game, as they have knocked out Paris Saint-Germain every time the sides have clashed in Champions League knockout. It will be interesting to see how PSG perform under their new manager Mauricio Pochettino.

Team News:

FC Barcelona:

The Blaugrana will be without Ansu Fati, Gerard Pique, Martin Braithwaite, Philippe Coutinho, and Sergi Roberto for this high voltage clash. With the defence weakened, side will try their best to get better of PSG with their attacking prowess. Moreover, with Messi having found his form back in the last league clash, one can expect the Catalonians to charge on PSG with the Argentine heading the frontline.

Paris Saint-Germain:

Les Parisiens also have serious injury crises and will have to aboard the flight to Spain without former Barca star Neymar, Angel di Maria, Rafinha, Marco Verratti, and Colin Dagba. As all areas lack one or the other first choice player, PSG will probably be not at their best either, but with both the teams weakened, it will be fair and square battle. One can expect Kylian Mbappe to step up in the absence of his Brazilian partner.

Key Players:

Barcelona vs Paris Saint-Germain Key Players

Analysis:

With world class teams on card, one can surely expect this game to have goals in it. However, it will be interesting to see how both coaches plan to play against one another. Koeman and Pochettino have quite different philosophies, and that will further enhance the fun, as contest will turn into a battle of wits. One can expect midfielders and attackers to play a huge role this time out. Moreover, Paris will be extra careful coming into this game and will not hold back from scoring goals as they have even given up four goal leads in the past.

For Fantasy team, it is recommended to have maximum attackers and attacking midfielders from both the teams.

Team 1

Barcelona vs Paris Saint-Germain Fantasy Team 1

Team 2

Barcelona vs Paris Saint-Germain Fantasy Team 2

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Probable Playing XIs:

FC Barcelona:

ter Stegen; Firpo, Umtiti, Lenglet, Alba; Busquets, de Jong, Pedri; Griezmann, Messi, Dembele

Paris Saint-Germain:

Navas; Kehrer, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Kurawa; Gueye, Paredes; Kean, Draxler, Mbappe; Icardi

Best 14:

Goalkeepers: ter Stegen, Navas

Defenders: Umtiti, Alba, Marquinhos, Kehrer

Midfielders: de Jong, Pedri, Gueye, Draxler

Forwards: Messi, Dembele, Icardi, Mbappe

Disclaimer: The fantasy tips and facts expressed within this article are personal opinion of the author. They do not reflect the views of SportsTiger. It is not a reflection of the actual points you might earn. SportsTiger does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.