Paris Saint-Germain will face Saint-Etienne in Ligue 1 on Sunday as they attempt to rebound from their chastening 2-1 midweek loss to Manchester City in the Champions League.
Although Kylian Mbappe gave PSG the lead in that encounter, they saw little of the ball and collapsed defensively after they lost Ander Herrera around the hour mark and were forced to replace him with the lumbering Danilo Perreira.
On top of that defeat, the Ligue 1 leaders are having to cope with persistent rumours that head coach Mauricio Pochettino will depart the club for Manchester United – a move that is most likely to take place in the summer.
There is some positive news, though, for PSG. Sergio Ramos could be available to finally make his debut for the club after arriving from Real Madrid in the summer. In the long term, this could see PSG move to a 3-4-3 formation, although he is unlikely to be fit to start this match, so the usual 4-2-3-1 should be retained.
Mbappe will, of course, lead the line, supported by a high-class trio of Lionel Messi, who scored his first Ligue 1 goal in a victory over Nantes last weekend, Neymar and Angel Di Maria.
The two central midfielders will give Pochettino greater cause for concern. Marco Verratti, Georginio Wijnaldum and Ander Herrera are all set to be ruled out because of injury, with the Spaniard tipped to miss out until Christmas with his issue.
Idrissa Gueye and Danilo are the obvious options to step into that sector, although academy player Eric Junior Dina Ebembe could also feature.
No overhaul of the defence is forecast, though Juan Bernat may be preferred to Nuno Mendes on the left to keep things fresh.
In goal, meanwhile, Keylor Navas and Gianluigi Donnarumma have been rotated on a two-game basis, and if that pattern is maintained, the Italy goalkeeper will feature.
Possible PSG starting XI vs. Saint-Etienne
