“French League”: Montpellier is a test to confirm Saint-Germain’s awakening before the “Milan battle”
Champions League champion Paris Saint-Germain hopes to continue its recovery before its trip to Italy next Tuesday to face Milan in the fourth round of the group stage of the Champions League, when it hosts Montpellier on Friday in the opening of the eleventh round of the French League.
Spanish coach Luis Enrique’s men have only dropped two points since losing to their guest Nice 2-3 in the fifth round, where they fell into the trap of a goalless draw against host Clermont Ferrand in the seventh round, but they achieved four victories, including three in a row, which enabled them to rise to second place by one point. Behind leaders Nice.
Enrique hopes to exploit the ground staff and the crowd to seize the lead, even if only temporarily, as Nice awaits a significant confrontation against its guest Rennes on Sunday, in addition to raising the morale of his players before their trip to Milan on Tuesday to enhance their chances of reaching the round of 16 in the ancient continental competition that the club is eager for. behind its title for the first time in its history.
Enrique is counting on international star Kylian Mbappe, who scored a brace in the recent difficult victory over host Brest (3-2) last Sunday, strengthening his position at the top of the scorers list with 10 goals.
He praised him on Thursday, stressing that he “will win many Golden Balls.”
He added, in response to a question in a press conference at the Parisian club’s headquarters about Mbappe’s chances of winning this award one day, after he came third behind Argentine Lionel Messi and Norwegian Erling Haaland on Monday in the award awarded by France Football magazine: “Winning the Golden Balls, in addition to what… The player delivers it at the individual level – and for Kylian, this is the maximum. He must win titles at the club and national team levels.”
Enrique added: “Here (at Paris Saint-Germain) we try to win as many times as possible, and a player like Kylian, I am sure, will win many Ballon d’Ors.”
Enrique has a striking attacking force alongside Mbappe, such as Randall Kolo Mwani, Ousmane Dembélé, Bradley Barkola, and Portuguese Gonçalo Ramosh, but he will clash with a team that hit hard in its last match against its guest, Toulouse, when it beat them 3-0.
Montpellier occupies eleventh place with 11 points after a point was deducted from its score, due to fans throwing firecrackers during stoppage time of its match against Clermont-Ferrand in the eighth stage, when it was leading 4-2. The Disciplinary Committee of the League punished Montpellier by replaying its match against Clermont-Ferrand. Behind closed doors in Montpellier, with a point deducted from his score.
Luis Enrique (EBA)
Montpellier’s most prominent player is Jordanian international striker Musa Al-Taamari, who has scored three goals so far, and was unlucky to have his brace against Clermont-Ferrand canceled due to the association’s penalty.
Al-Taamari will face an Arab star in Saint-Germain, Moroccan international defender Achraf Hakimi, if they play as starters in the match.
Nice is awaiting a strong confrontation against its guest, Rennes, in a match in which the home team seeks to maintain its unbeaten record so far this season.
Nice, the only team that has not lost in the league so far, has achieved four draws and six wins, including its last three matches, and will try to exploit the shaky morale of the Rennes players, who earned one point in their last three matches.
Nice may enter its match against Rennes on Sunday evening under great pressure if it finds itself in third place if Saint-Germain wins over Montpellier on Friday and Monaco beats Brest on Sunday afternoon.
Monaco, which gave up the lead in the last stage by losing to its host Lille 0-2, will try to restore balance to maintain at least the two-point difference that separates it from its neighbor Nice, or catch up with it in the event of a draw, or overcome it in the event of a loss.
Saturday’s summit will feature Marseille and its guest, Lille, which will witness great security oversight in view of the riots caused by fans of the southern team last Sunday before its team’s match against its guest, Lyon.
The Lyon bus was attacked with stones by Marseille fans, and the coach of the former Italian international guest team, Fabio Grosso, was injured in the face, before it was postponed until December 6, according to a statement by the League on Thursday.
L’Equipe newspaper reported that Lille president Olivier Letang sent a letter to public authorities and the Professional League in order to obtain guarantees for the safety of his team before confirming the trip.
On Saturday, Lorient will also play against Lens, on Sunday Lyon will play against Metz, Toulouse will play against Le Havre, Strasbourg will play against Clermont-Ferrand, and Nantes will play against Reims.
2023-11-03 08:54:39
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