UEFA Champions League soccer is back at Parc des Princes on Tuesday when Paris Saint-Germain welcome Borussia Dortmund for the opening game in Group F. The French and German giants are up against Milan and Newcastle United too, so the pressure will be on from the very first game with little margin for error. PSG have a fourth new head coach from the past four editions with Luis Enrique the latest to try to secure elusive continental success after Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino and Christophe Galtier.
Les Parisiens and Dortmund met back in 2020 when the Ligue 1 champions were final-bound, only to lose out to BVB's domestic rivals Bayern Munich in the final while Tuchel's current club knocked PSG out last season which set in motion this summer's mega overhaul. The French juggernaut lost 3-2 at home to OGC Nice last week while Dortmund beat Freiburg 4-2 but both sides are currently off the pace in terms of being in early title contention.
"We need to wait and see how the competition starts," said Luis Enrique in Monday's press conference. "Soccer is a wonderful sport because every result is possible. As a club, we are convinced and highly motivated. We go into every competition looking to go as far as possible. We are ambitious, and the only aim that we need to have is to play to win. In terms of results, we have not necessarily started well, but everywhere I have managed, this was the same. There are always a lot of details to correct in soccer.
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"The Nice game has nothing to do with the Dortmund game -- they are two separate competitions. We have a lot of room for improvement, but there are things that we are already doing well. What matters is what the fans see. We are playing well, we are running with intensity, we are doing a lot of running with and without the ball, and for the moment, the players' behavior has been irreproachable.
"To win the Champions League, you need a great team. Every player needs to be ready to play and to step onto the pitch. You need to be together as a team and humble. You need to want to win and to help the team. It is never a good sign to be obsessed with something -- be that in football or in life. You need to have hope and ambition, but being obsessed never works. We have a lot of hope, we are really looking forward to playing, and we want to make the fans happy."
Here's our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
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How to watch and odds
- Date: Tuesday, September 19 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Parc des Princes -- Paris, France
- Watch: Paramount+
- Odds: PSG -143; Draw: +333; Dortmund +320
Team news
PSG: Kylian Mbappe started and scored twice against Nice to keep his superb early season form up but Marco Asensio, Nuno Mendes and Presnel Kimpembe will remain out of action for Luis Enrique. Nordi Mukiele and Fabian Ruiz are doubts while Lee Kang In has been struggling of late and is due to depart for the Asian Games with South Korea. Marquinhos and Manuel Ugarte should start despite being substitutes against Nice while Danilo Pereira and Carlos Soler could make way.
Potential PSG XI: Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Skriniar, Hernandez; Zaire-Emery, Ugarte, Vitinha; Dembele, Kolo Muani, Mbappe.
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Dortmund: Thomas Meunier and Mateu Morey remain out while Julien Duranville is still not yet fully fit. Gregor Kobel and Julian Ryerson both went 90 against Freiburg and Niclas Fullkrug came off the bench althoug Gio Reyna is still struggling. Marius Wolf could continue if Ryerson is not yet fit enough for back-to-back games while Ramy Bensebaini is also likely to continue on the opposite flank.
Potential Dortmund XI: Kobel; Wolf, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Bensebaini; Sabitzer, Can, Brandt; Malen, Haller, Reus.
Prediction
Both PSG and Dortmund need to make a winning start here and the hosts are not short of goals despite a shaky defensive showing against Nice. Luis Enrique is likely to shore things up a bit for this one and it should be enough for the French giants to make a winning start. Pick: PSG 2, Dortmund 1.