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Strong picks for the PSG-Sociedad match
It’s more than a must-win for the French here, but it’s in matches like this that you can lose the most.
In theory, one of the most straightforward match-ups in the CL straight knockout stage continues. In a PSG-Sociedad line-up, the Basques would pay almost @4.00 to progress, but as we have learned from the last few years of BL seasons, the French champions can be surprised by anyone. Let’s see what the best bets are for the Paris return leg and whether the three-way odds are realistic!
The French points chase, which should prepare PSG for the bigger challenges ahead, is continuing at an unchanged pace. However, that is not going to happen this year either, as Luis Enrique’s side are struggling to claim the gold medal, which obviously does not make it any easier to gauge the strength of the team. The Parisians have suffered through the BL group stage, and it is perhaps fair to conclude that they are not one of the favourites for the series.
Taking all their games into account, Lucho’s boys have a 12-4-0 record in their last 16 matches, with a total of 45 goals scored.
The Spanish manager will not be without another key man, with Kimpembe and Skriniar already on the injured list, so he will have to deal with the problem of abundance in the starting line-up. The Frenchman will probably prefer the usual 4-2-3-1 with Kolo Mouani, Dembele and Sergio Asensio behind Mbappe.
The biggest topic of discussion was of course the Turtle, who was once again rumoured to be heading to Real Madrid in the summer, and was also unable to play against Lille due to injury. However, Enrique said that we will see 100% Mbappe against Sociedad.
Important absentees for the guests
On the other side, there are more question marks, and not only because of the absentees. Oyarzabal, Tierney, Odriozola, Carlos Fernández and Munoz are all injured, and with so many injuries it’s hard to compete in Paris. Especially with Sociedad scoreless for nearly 400 minutes, Rayo, Girona, Mallorca and Osasuna have all demolished the Basque side, who are still in contention for a European Cup start, whether in the league or the cup.
Imanol Alguacil’s side pulled off one of the biggest surprises of the BL group stage, topping the group ahead of Salzburg, Benfica and Inter, although their “reward” was still a very difficult tie.
It will be very difficult to make this 180 minutes tight for Sociedad, especially if Oyarzabal’s muscle injury doesn’t recover. Besides the home goalscorer, Tierney and Munoz are also serious injuries, and we don’t think the Basques, who are not in great form anyway, can handle that.
We’re betting on a straight home win, we disagree with the 1.70 or so on the Parisians to win here. Lucho could decide qualification in the first leg, and the different variations pay very well for this scenario.
