Who: Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich
What: Champions League semifinal, first leg
Where: Parc des Princes, Paris
When: Tuesday, April 28 at 9pm (19:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 16:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Whoever makes it through this Champions League semifinal will surely be the favourites for the final in Budapest in May, where either Arsenal or Atletico Madrid will await.
Bayern – perhaps the most in-form team in Europe – are eyeing a treble, having already sealed the Bundesliga title this season and reached the German Cup final. They also come into the game high on confidence after dispatching Real Madrid in a thrilling Champions League quarterfinal.
Defending champions PSG, meanwhile, are also in good form and are six points clear at the top of Ligue 1. The Parisians dumped Liverpool out in the quarterfinals with relative ease, but must overcome a poor recent record against Bayern to reach the final in May.
PSG have lost their last four Champions League games against Bayern, although they did knock the Bavarian side out of the Club World Cup last July, beating them 2-0 in the quarterfinals.
Whatever happens, plenty of goals seem likely – both sides have scored 38 in the Champions League so far this season, more than any other club.
Paris Saint-Germain took another stride towards the Ligue 1 crown on Saturday, beating Angers 3-0 to open up a six-point advantage over Lens at the top of the table.
Coach Luis Enrique rested his attacking trio of Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue.
“We got the job done well,” Enrique said. “These are the kinds of matches that can be tricky, but we showed that we were ready.
“When you get a result like this, it’s the best way to prepare for the Champions League semifinal.”
Enrique insisted his players were relishing their gruelling schedule as they chased glory on two fronts, with their game against Angers the third of nine matches in 29 days.
The fixture pile-up is in part due to PSG having domestic matches postponed to aid their Champions League campaign.
“We have a tough schedule, but we love having it, and the rest – whether it’s a negative result against Lyon or a positive one against Nantes – doesn’t change anything,” he said before the win over Angers.
“I don’t change the direction we’re taking depending on whether we win or lose. What matters is arriving at the match with the best team, with players in good individual form. We can’t control everything.”
Harry Kane has scored 53 goals in 45 games in all competitions for Bayern, the most by an Englishman in any league in almost a century.
After Bayern beat Dortmund in February, Kane had scored four consecutive braces. With 30 goals in 24 games, he looked on course to break Robert Lewandowski’s single-season record of 41 goals.
But since then, Kane has started just one of Bayern’s seven league games, as boss Vincent Kompany has wrapped him in cotton wool for the big stage.
After coming off the bench to help Bayern come from three goals down to win 4-3 at Mainz on Saturday, Kane told reporters where his true focus lay.
“It’ll be tough,” Kane said of chasing down Lewandowski’s record. “Obviously, I’m here to try and win the Champions League and try and win the German Cup. So ultimately that takes priority.”
Kane called PSG “the reigning European champions for a reason”, adding the French champions are “a really strong side with some great quality and are well-coached”.
“There’s going to be a lot of activity. It’s going to come down to moments and quality.”
Kompany said the reigning Champions League holders will pose a huge challenge.
“Paris in the Champions League, the defending champions, it’s probably the toughest challenge,” Kompany said before the upcoming game.
“I don’t want to stop here. Now come the decisive weeks. We’re looking forward to them, but we also know how difficult it will be. Our belief is there, and that’s worth a lot in football.”
Kompany will be suspended for the opening leg after picking up his third yellow card of the tournament in the second-leg win over Real Madrid. His English assistant, Aaron Danks, will be in the dugout.
“Of course we’ll miss him on the sideline. He’s our boss and our leader,” Kane said. “But everyone knows what needs to be done, even if the boss isn’t on the sideline.”
Ousmane Dembele struck twice to confirm PSG’s place in the last four with a 2-0 victory over Liverpool, sealing a 4-0 aggregate win at a rain-soaked Anfield.
Bayern Munich’s Luis Diaz and Michael Olise scored late goals to give the hosts a dramatic 4-3 win over Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals and send them into the last four on a 6-4 aggregate score after a thrilling tie.
The two clubs have played each other 16 times and have never drawn – Bayern won nine of those games, while PSG won seven.
Last five encounters:
Bayern Munich beat PSG away in November in the league phase of the competition as Luis Diaz scored two goals and was shown a red card.
The Colombian winger struck twice before being sent off for a violent tackle on Achraf Hakimi on the stroke of half-time.
PSG, who reduced the arrears through Joao Neves, dominated possession after the break but failed to make it fully count and slipped to their first defeat in the competition since last season’s quarterfinal second leg against Aston Villa.
Key midfielder Vitinha is a major doubt after sustaining a heel issue earlier this month, while Quentin Ndjantou has been ruled out with an injury.
Desire Doue and Nuno Mendes hobbled off injured in the quarterfinal second-leg win over Liverpool, but both were named in the squad to face Angers and should be available to feature against Bayern.
Midfielder Fabian Ruiz played 45 minutes against Angers as he works his way back to full fitness following a two-month layoff with a knee injury and will likely start against the German champions.
Predicted starting XI:
Safonov (goalkeeper); Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes; Ruiz, Zaire-Emery, Neves; Doue, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia
Serge Gnabry, Tom Bischof, and Sven Ulreich have all been ruled out with injuries, as has Raphael Guerreiro, who suffered a minor hamstring tear against Mainz at the weekend.
Teenage star Lennart Karl is approaching full fitness as he recovers from a torn thigh muscle and may be available.
Predicted starting XI:
Neuer (goalkeeper); Stanisic, Upamecano, Tah, Laimer; Pavlovic, Kimmich; Olise, Musiala, Diaz; Kane
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