Paris Saint-Germain and Montpellier HSC will meet on Friday in Ligue 1. PSG topped Le Havre AC last time out, 4-1, but Montpellier HSC drew with Strasbourg 1-1. Below, you can find our prediction for this contest.
Gone is the entirety of their three-headed attacking monster, with Neymar and Lionel Messi departing last summer and Kylian Mbappe moving on this past offseason. They've parted ways in recent years with the likes of Marco Verratti, Angel Di Maria, and Mauro Icardi as well, looking to engineer Champions League success with a different approach.
Suddenly, the club's European prospects look better than ever, suddenly boasting a roster bloated with more sheer talent than star-power. Fabian Ruiz exploded this summer at Euro 2024, Achraf Hakimi is one of the world's best right-backs, Gianluigi Donnarumma is a top goalkeeper in Europe, and Bradley Barcola has developed into a consistent attacking threat, amongst many others.
While European success remains the goal, the domestic campaign is considered quite important, looking to build a strong lead atop the table early on so they can shift their focus towards continental competition.
PSG are still without Euro 2024 star Fabian Ruiz and Goncalo Ramos was injured in the opener, but PSG should still have more than enough firepower to overwhelm Montpellier. The question is really in what fashion.
While Le Havre managed to get a goal and keep PSG to a 1-1 draw until a late flurry of goals in the opener last weekend, the game played out much differently. PSG ripped off 15 shots, with 10 on target, while Le Havre had just 24 percent possession and managed just five total shots.
With Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal and the likes of Bradley Barcola and Randal Kolo Muani back in the attack, PSG should manage to put Montpellier away at home with little trouble.
Montpellier goalkeeper Benjamin Lecompte was one of the better shot stoppers in Ligue 1 last season, but he will have lots of work to do in this match.
PSG peppered Le Havre in their opener, and Montpellier were out-shot by Strasbourg at home in their first match of the season. Last year, Montpellier conceded the most shots in the entire French top flight. This is a no-brainer.
Unfortunately, the shots market on this game are understandably inflated, but corners present a strong opening. PSG racked up eight against Le Havre, and have put up 16 in their last two meetings with Montpellier.
Montpellier try to play an open style of football, but against PSG, they'll have to keep it on a short leash. Time and again, they've looked to play their way against the French giants and fallen on their faces. Montpellier have conceded an outlandish 21 goals in their last five matches against PSG, scoring themselves in three of them but also losing big each time.
At some point, they have to understand that a defensive shift against the biggest clubs gives them the best chance of snatching a result, and it will come at the cost of their attacking mentality. That's ok from a results-based standpoint, but for betting, it means we can take advantage of the expectations for a high-scoring affair.
Ligue 1 matches are televised in the United States by beIN Sports. That channel is available on Fubo, who are offering a free trial for new users.
beIN Sports are also the broadcast partner for Ligue 1 in Canada, while there is currently no partner for the league in the UK, as a deal is still being hashed out.
Kyle Bonn is a soccer content producer for The Sporting News.
