PSG’s penchant for capitulations in the Champions League is well-documented, and it would be some story if Mauricio Pochettino’s under-performing side were to lose their grip on the Ligue 1 title now, but stranger things have happened in football.
With the ill Lionel Messi helplessly watching on, PSG were outgunned, outfought and outclassed by Monaco at the Stade Louis II, as Wissam Ben Yedder’s deft near-post flick and penalty came either side of Kevin Volland’s finish in gameweek 29.
While Pochettino’s side still boast an unassailable 12-point lead at the top of the pile, the gap to the summit could be cut to single figures if second-placed Marseille overcome Saint-Etienne on Saturday, and PSG may just start to look nervously over their shoulder should this mixed bag of results continue.
Bottling the Ligue 1 title would be a whole new level of embarrassment for PSG and Pochettino, but home is truly where the heart is for Les Parisiens as far as domestic fortunes are concerned, with the league leaders taking 40 points from a possible 42 at the Parc des Princes this term.
When Sunday rolls around, it will be a year to the day that PSG’s most recent Ligue 1 home defeat befell them – a 1-0 loss to Lille – and the hosts will certainly feel optimistic about their chances of a seventh clean sheet from eight at the Parc des Princes to reignite their silverware pursuit.
Had it not been for the heroics of Matthieu Dreyer as Lorient’s last line of defence, Les Merlus could have ended up on the wrong end of the scoreline against top-five hopefuls Strasbourg, but Christophe Pelissier’s side displayed a sense of defensive resilience that has come to the fore quite often in recent weeks.
Dreyer had to be alert to claw away Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s deflected close-range effort, which took a nick off Leo Petrot on its way to Dreyer’s outstretched hand, and Strasbourg number one Matz Sels unconventionally kept out Armand Lauriente’s powerful free kick in a goalless stalemate.
Keeping five clean sheets from seven Ligue 1 matches since the beginning of February has seen Lorient slowly clamber away from the dreaded dotted line, with Les Merlus entering gameweek 30 16th in the standings and five points clear of the automatic relegation places.
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A resurgent Saint-Etienne could leapfrog Lorient with victory over Marseille on Saturday, but Pelissier’s side have impressively won two and drawn one of their last three away from home –
keeping three clean sheets to boot – and will need their newfound solidity to be on full show if they are to travel back from the capital with something to show for it.
Furthermore, Lorient have managed to avoid defeat in their last two meetings with PSG – drawing 1-1 at home in December after a 3-2 win at the Moustoir last term – but Les Parisiens have strung together a five-game winning streak in this fixture on home soil
