Paris Saint-Germain laid down a marker last time out in Ligue 1 when they thrashed potential title rivals Monaco 5-2 in the French capital.
That triumph was their sixth on the bounce in the league, although Nice’s victory over Toulouse means their lead at the summit is just a point.
Luis Enrique’s men will now face up against the master drawers in Le Havre. Having drawn seven of their 13 league games upon their return to Ligue 1, Le Havre have proven to be mightily tough to beat. However, the underlying metrics suggest they aren’t quite as stubborn as the table suggests.
PSG were fortunate to walk away with a point aginst Newcastle in midweek despite dominating the contest, and they’ll have to be much more efficient in the final third this weekend. Here’s how Enrique could set his side up against Le Havre.
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma – The Italian was culpable for Newcastle’s goal in midweek, but both of his backups are currently out injured.
RB: Achraf Hakimi – Hakimi is enjoying the positional freedom granted to him by Enrique with the right-back notching seven goal contributions in 11 Ligue 1 outings so far this season.
CB: Milan Skriniar – The Slovak defender has been a mainstay since joining from Inter, and he’ll continue in the team while Marquinhos nurses a hamstring injury.
CB: Lucas Hernandez – Enrique started Danilo Pereira alongside Skriniar on Tuesday night, but he’ll likely revert to the configuration that started against Monaco last Friday.
LB: Nordi Mukiele – With Lucas shifting back into the centre-back pairing, the door will open for the powerful Mukiele to return to the XI.
CM: Manuel Ugarte – The Uruguayan has quickly become a key part of PSG’s midfield. With Enrique lacking #6 alternatives, Ugarte is likely to be a mainstay as the season progresses.
CM: Fabian Ruiz – Fabian has enjoyed an uptick in minutes as of late, and he’ll be looking to make the most of Warren Zaire-Emery’s absence.
CM: Vitinha – A surprise exclusion in midweek, the creative Vitinha will surely come back into the side on Sunday against a resilient Le Havre defence.
RW: Marco Asensio – It might be wise to give Dembele a rest given his muscle injury history, so Asensio could return to the fold after dropping to the bench against Newcastle. The Spaniard’s PSG career started with two goals and an assist in his first three Ligue 1 games.
ST: Goncalo Ramos – Enrique is happy to rotate his strikers by the game. With Randal Kolo Muani starting last time out, Ramos will likely start Sunday’s game.
LW: Kylian Mbappe – A cool Mbappe penalty bailed PSG out of a horribly wasteful showing on Tuesday night. He remains PSG’s go-to guy, and the French superstar will be looking to add to his 14 Ligue 1 goals in Le Havre.
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