AS Monaco welcome Paris Saint-Germain to the principality in the first meeting between the two teams expected to be vying for the Ligue 1 title at the end of the season
The French champions are already four points clear of Les Monegasques in the early table thanks to a strong start to the domestic term, and Leonardo Jardim's men are already out of the UEFA Champions League and into the UEFA Europa League after a mixed start.
The hosts could do with a win Sunday to prevent PSG from opening up a sizable advantage over their expected title rivals inside of the first month of the season.
Date: Sunday, August 30
Time: 8 p.m. BST (9 p.m. CEST)/3 p.m. EDT
Venue: Stade Louis II, Monaco
TV Info: beIN Sports 1 (France), BT Sport Europe (starts 9 p.m. BST one hour after kick-off), beIN Sports (USA at 3 p.m. EDT)
Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect
Preamble
PSG travel to Stade Louis II enjoying their best start to a Ligue 1 season since the 2005-06 campaign after last week's 1-0 win away at Montpellier confirmed three straights wins without conceding a single goal.
Laurent Blanc's men have an excellent opportunity to already strike a significant early blow in the race for the title by winning in the principality and moving seven points clear of Les Monegasques.
Jardim's outfit were very strong defensively in both outings against Les Parisiens last season and are yet to lose to the capital club in Ligue 1 since their return to the top flight back in 2013. PSG did beat a weakened ASM side 2-0 in the Coupe de France quarter-finals, though, and the champions will be targeting a similar result Sunday.
In terms of personnel, Monaco's squad is arguably as strong—if not stronger—than it was last season. However, the new group of players, which is still having elements added to it after the signings of Fabio Coentrao and Marcos Lopes, will take time to gel.
Judging by the pair of performances against Valencia, Jardim's men are not on the same page just yet, and they are not likely to be by the time PSG visit.
The principality outfit are out of the Champions League, but they still have the Europa League to play for, and they cannot dwell on their unlucky defeat across both legs to the Spaniards.
Jardim needs to get a response out of his team against PSG; otherwise, the Europa League and both domestic cups might be ASM's best chances of success this season.
Form Lines (all competitions):
Monaco
W 1-2 vs. OGC Nice (Ligue 1)
D 0-0 vs. Lille OSC (Ligue 1)
L 3-1 vs. Valencia (Champions League play-off)
D 1-1 vs. Toulouse (Ligue 1)
W 2-1 vs. Valencia (Champions League play-off)
PSG
W 2-0 vs. Olympique Lyonnais (Trophee des Champions)
W 0-1 vs. Lille (Ligue 1)
W 2-0 vs. Gazelec Ajaccio (Ligue 1)
W 0-1 vs. Montpellier HSC (Ligue 1)
Predicted Formations
Monaco (4-3-3): Subasic—Fabinho, Raggi, Carvalho, Elderson—Toulalan (c), Silva, Pasalic—Dirar, Martial, Cavaleiro.
PSG (4-3-1-2): Trapp—Aurier, Silva (c), Luiz, Maxwell—Motta, Verratti, Matuidi—Lucas Moura—Ibrahimovic, Cavani.
Player to Watch Per Side
For Monaco, vibrant young striker Anthony Martial is the player to keep an eye on. The 19-year-old demonstrated why he is currently in such high demand in both Valencia encounters, and his pace could cause PSG some problems at the back.
The Frenchman scored a late equaliser in the 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes last season and will aim to trouble the champions' captain Thiago Silva and David Luiz.
If his ASM team-mates, notably the likes of the inventive Bernardo Silva, can feed him the ball as often as possible, Martial holds the key to unlocking the capital club's tight defence.
As for PSG, there is only one player whom everyone will have their eye on at Stade Louis II, and that is Angel Di Maria. The Argentina international is expected to feature in the squad and play some part in the principality this weekend, although probably not from the start.
El Fideo's potential debut is one of the main storylines coming into the clash, and PSG fans are keen to get their first glimpse of this summer's star signing in his new colours. If Di Maria features for Les Parisiens, he will be the player whom everybody's eyes are on as he takes his first steps with his new team.
Key Battle
The decisive battle in Monaco's clash with PSG will be that of veteran central defender Ricardo Carvalho against Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
While Aymen Abdennour's future gets sorted out away from the pitch, the Portugal international is an important member of Jardim's defensive plans.
However, with Ibrahimovic back in action for Les Parisiens and raring to go after an extended spell out with a knee issue, the battle between the pair could be decisive.
A combination of the Swede, Edinson Cavani and the likes of Di Maria, Lucas Moura or Ezequiel Lavezzi has the potential to rip apart a Monaco defence that is unsure of itself at present.
Carvalho and one of Andrea Raggi or Wallace will have to be at their absolute best to keep Ibrahimovic and his teammates at bay.
Odds (Odds Shark)
Monaco: 279-100
PSG: 49-25
Draw: 100-103