Preview: Manchester City vs Paris Saint-Germain - prediction, team news, lineups

Fresh from their statement win at Anfield, Manchester City lock horns with Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain under the lights at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night.

These two European giants meet for the first time since PSG secured a 4-2 home victory over the Citizens in the League Phase of the 2024-25 competition.

Match preview

For the first time since they were found guilty of breaching Premier League financial regulations, Man City stunned Anfield into silence with a convincing 3-0 victory over 10-man Liverpool to preserve their 100% record and remain top of the Premier League table after six matches.

While a cloud of uncertainty hangs over the current Premier League campaign as Man City await the verdict of their appeal, the Citizens answered a chorus of boos with a confident, classy and professional display worthy of praise – one that a banana-filled away end certainly enjoyed on Merseyside after weeks of unwarranted stick from rival fans.

Manager Enzo Maresca has no control over the outside noise and is focused fully on extending his impressive start to life in the Man City hotseat. Eight wins out of eight are already in the bag across all competitions, with his Citizens side scoring 23 goals in the process at a ruthless rate of 2.87 per game.

Maresca’s predecessor Pep Guardiola will be at the Etihad on Wednesday for the first time since his legendary 10-year reign came to an end last season. Interestingly, the last time City began a season with nine consecutive wins in all tournaments was during Guardiola’s own maiden season at the club in 2016-17.

In front of an emotionally-charged Etihad crowd, Man City will back themselves to build on their strong form on Wednesday, as they have lost only one of their last 25 home fixtures in the group stage/League Phase of the Champions League (W21 D3).

The 2023 winners overcame a feisty clash with Porto to win 2-0 in their Champions League opener five weeks ago, but they have suffered defeat in two of their previous three meetings with PSG, who remain the team to beat in Europe’s premier club competition.

Back-to-back Champions League winners PSG already sit top of the 36-team League Phase standings this season (albeit after only one game) after cruising to an emphatic 6-1 home victory over Slovan Bratislava at the beginning of September.

The perennial Ligue 1 champions are not sitting pretty at the summit on the domestic front, though, as Luis Enrique’s men failed to win any of their opening three league matches (D2 L1) and subsequently sit down in sixth in the Ligue 1 table, three points behind unbeaten leaders Monaco.

However, PSG have responded with three successive Ligue 1 victories over Brest, Marseille and Le Mans, beating the latter 3-1 at the Parc des Princes on Saturday with a much-changed lineup and one eye on Wednesday’s trip to the Etihad.

PSG’s hopes of extending their winning streak in all competitions to five matches could prove challenging against a high-flying Man City side, as the Parisians have failed to win any of their previous four visits to the blue side of Manchester (D1 L3), losing three times in the Champions League by an aggregate score of 5-1.

However, Enrique’s current crop of stars can take comfort from the fact that PSG are unbeaten in their last 11 meetings with English clubs in UEFA competitions (W8 D3). The French giants could become just the second team in Champions League history to put together a 10+ unbeaten run against English sides after Real Madrid (11).

Manchester City Champions League form:

Manchester City form (all competitions):

Paris Saint-Germain Champions League form:

Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):

Team News

Man City have no injury or fitness concerns heading into Wednesday’s clash, while Phil Foden is available for selection after serving a three-match domestic ban following his red card against rivals Man United on September 13.

After a sublime substitute cameo against Liverpool, setting up one goal and scoring another, Jeremy Doku will hope to be rewarded with a start on the left flank, which could therefore see Antoine Semenyo shift over to the right side of attack.

Josko Gvardiol is another pushing to start at the expense of Nico O'Reilly and could join a back four including Ruben Dias, Marc Guehi and Matheus Nunes, while goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma is expected to start against his former club where he won four Ligue 1 titles and one Champions League between 2021 and 2025.

Few would be surprised to see goal machine Erling Haaland lead the line. The Norwegian has scored eight goals in as many games for Maresca’s side so far this term, including one on Sunday, while he has netted 59 times in as many UCL matches in his career.

As for PSG, their only minor injury concern is with young midfielder Senny Mayulu, who will have a dead leg assessed ahead of kickoff.

Star attacker Ousmane Dembele - who has scored in five consecutive UCL appearances - and left-back Nuno Mendes were both granted an extra period of rest and subsequently missed PSG’s win over Le Mans. However, both players are expected to return to Enrique’s starting lineup on Wednesday.

Captain Marquinhos, William Pacho, Vitinha, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Ferran Torres are also strong contenders to earn recalls, the latter of whom is set to face his former club and scored a hat-trick on UCL matchday one against Slovan Bratislava.

Manchester City possible starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Guehi, Gvardiol; Anderson, Fernandez; Semenyo, Cherki, Doku; Haaland

Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:

Safonov; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes; Neves, Vitinha, Ruiz; Torres, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia

We say: Manchester City 2-2 Paris Saint-Germain

Amid all the adversity, Man City are in electric form at present and should feed off a vastly defiant and uplifting atmosphere at the Etihad, though they now face a formidable PSG side that has rediscovered its groove after recovering from a sluggish start to the campaign.

While both attack-minded teams will push relentlessly for the victory in what promises to be an entertaining, end-to-end contest, we can ultimately see these two sides cancelling each other out and sharing the spoils on this occasion.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.