Three-time UEFA Champions League winners, Manchester United need at least a point from their remaining two Group H matches to confirm a place in the 2020-21 knock-outs. And in the first outing, the Red Devils hosts last season's finalists Paris Saint-Germain at the Theatre of Dreams, knowing well enough that they can complete double over the French giants. Easier said... (More Football News)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United defeated PSG 2-1 in the first leg with Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford scoring for the visitors. And Thomas Tuchel's side will be aware that a loss at Old Trafford will leave their Round of 16 hopes hanging by a threat, if RB Leipzig beat the Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir in the other match, in the early kick-off. As things stand now, United lead the Group H table with nine points, with PSG and Leipzig on six points each. Basaksehir have three points.
Neymar burries one
RB Leipzig just made things more interesting in the group. Despite a sensational hat-trick from Irfan Kahveci, the Bundesliga side won their clash against Istanbul Basaksehir 4-3. And they are now second with nine points, three more than PSG and on level with Man Utd.
Starting XIs and team sheets:
Man Utd: De Gea, Wan Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Telles, Fred, McTominay, Fernandes, Martial, Cavani, Rashford.
Subs: Henderson, Bailly, Fosu-Mensah, Williams, James, Lingard, Mata, Matic, Pogba, Van de Beek, Greenwood, Ighalo.
PSG: Navas, Florenzi, Marquinhos, Diallo, Kimpembe, Veratti, Danilo, Parades, Neymar, Kean, Mbappe.
Subs: Rico, Letellier, Kehrer, Di Maria, Rafinha, Kurzawa, Herrera, Bakker, Gueye, Dagba, Pembele, Fadiga.
Focus on Cavani
Ahead of the match, PSG head coach Tuchel has insisted that Edinson Cavani has nothing to prove as the United forward prepares for a Champions League reunion against his old club. Cavani joined United on a free transfer on deadline day in October, having left PSG as the Ligue 1 champions' all-time leading scorer with 200. The 33-year-old Uruguay international won six league titles during his time at PSG, where he arrived from Serie A outfit Napoli in 2013. And he has scored three Premier League goals for United after coming off the bench and netting twice against Southampton.
Cavani became the first United player since manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 1999 to have at least three goal involvements as a substitute in a single Premier League game as the Red Devils overcame Southampton 3-2.
"Always ready to do everything for the team. A big physical impact, scoring comes naturally to him and he's reliable 24/7 – you can call him in the night and he will be there – to score, to defend, to score, to defend," Tuchel said. "I'm happy for him personally that he could show this to all Manchester United fans in the last game against Southampton – he was absolutely decisive for them."
And Neymar-Mbappe factor
Meanwhile, since the start of the 2016-17 season, PSG have only failed to score in one of their 39 games in the Champions League. They have netted an average of 2.4 goals per game in this run (95 in total) – the only side to keep a clean sheet against them in this run was Bayern Munich in last season's final.
Neymar has been directly involved in 60 goals in 63 appearances in the Champions League (36 goals and 24 assists) – since his debut in the competition in 2013, his 24 assists is the most of any player. Meaning, the Brazilian superstar holds the key for the French champions.
But the key to PSG's struggles so far this season has been their form in front of goal. While United have scored 12 goals in four games, PSG have found the net just five times. Meaning, PSG will need another star -- Kylian Mbappe -- to show his worth.
The Frenchman has not scored in the Champions League since a 5-0 win over Galatasaray on December 11 last year, despite taking 11 shots.
Check match and telecast details here:
Match: Manchester United Vs Paris Saint-Germain, UEFA Champions League 2020-21, Group H match
Date: December 3 (Thursday), 2020
Time: 01:30 AM IST/ 8:00 PM GMT (Wednesday)
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester, England.
TV Channels: Sony Ten 2/HD (In Indian sub-continent)
Live Stream: SonyLiv (Indian sub-continent)
Elsewhere...
France: RMC Sport en direct, RMC Sport 1, Téléfoot Stadium
Korea: SPOTV ON
Qatar: beIN SPORTS CONNECT, beIN Sports HD 11, beIN Sports HD 1
Russia: Match! Football 1, matchtv.ru, Sportbox.ru
Thailand: beIN Sports Connect, Goal.com
UAE: beIN Sports HD 11, beIN Sports HD 1, beIN SPORTS CONNECT
UK: BBC Radio 5 Live, BT Sport App, BT Sport 2, BT Sport Ultimate, BTSport.com
USA: CBS All Access, ZonaFutbol, Univision NOW, TUDN.com, UniMás, TUDN USA, TUDN App
Spain: Movistar+, Movistar Liga de Campeones 3, Mitele Plus
Likely XIs:
Manchester United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Telles; Fred, Matic, Van de Beek; Fernandes; Rashford, Cavani.
Paris Saint-Germain: Navas; Florenzi, Diallo, Kimpembe, Bakker; Verratti, Marquinhos, Herrera; Di Maria, Mbappe, Neymar.
Head-to-head: In the past three meetings, Manchester United have won twice. PSG won one.
