Paris Saint-Germain lost their grip on the Ligue 1 title last season as Monaco surprised everyone in France by finishing top of the table. Unai Emery cannot afford to miss out on the title again this season and PSG will expect to finish top, as they have done regularly in recent seasons. The club from the capital begin their campaign at home to Amiens.
PSG had won 4 Ligue 1 titles in a row before last season and will want to reassert their authority on French football.
Amiens will make the first Ligue 1 appearance in their history this weekend in Paris. They moved from the Championnat National to the top division in just 2 seasons and clinched promotion with a dramatic last-minute winner in their final game of the season.
PSG Form
PSG have had a mixed preseason, picking up a draw against Roma and then losing to Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus in friendly games.
However, the season really started last weekend in the French Super Cup fixture. Despite falling behind to Monaco in Tangier, PSG came back to win the match 2-1 thanks to a great free-kick from new signing Dani Alves and a header from Adrien Rabiot.
PSG are unbeaten in 23 home Ligue 1 games but did drop points by drawing matches at home last season. There were draws with Saint-Etienne, Marseille, Nice, Monaco, Toulouse and Caen.
Amiens Form
Amiens have endured a tough end to their preseason fixtures, losing each of their last 3 games. There were defeats to Nancy, Stoke City and Troyes. This is going to be a tough season for Amiens, having won consecutive promotions from the Championnat National and they could not have asked for a tougher opening fixture than PSG away.
Last season they did well away from home in Ligue 2 and enjoyed a good spell between late August and October, winning 4 and drawing 1 of their 5 games. Amiens won 5 of their last 13 away matches, drawing 4 and losing 4, keeping just 3 clean sheets.
Team News
PSG have the luxury of a fully fit squad from which to choose for this match. The transfer of Neymar from Barcelona has been completed but the Brazilian superstar will not be available for this game.
Amiens also have a full bill of health for this match and are likely to set up in a defensive formation. In contrast to PSG, Amiens’ transfer dealings have all been free transfers and the experienced Mathieu Bodmer is expected to start the game in defence.
Top Betting Tips
It would be one of the biggest shocks in the history of French football is Amiens were to win this match and that is reflected in their odds of 28/1 with Ladbrokes. PSG should have little trouble in taking maximum points and can be backed at 1/8 with William Hill.
With Amiens expected to play defensively, PSG should not have much to worry them at the back. PSG to win to nil is 4/6 at Ladbrokes.
Last season, despite not winning the league PSG did put in some good performances at home beating Metz 3-0, Dijon 3-0, Rennes 4-0, Lorient 5-0, Guingamp 4-0 and Bastia 5-0. You can get 10/11 with Ladbrokes for PSG to win 3 goals or more.