PARIS (AP) 鈥� Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique may be unsure how to approach the second leg of the Champions League playoff against Monaco on Wednesday.
Although PSG is 3-2 ahead, protecting leads is not his style. But attacking too much against a technically strong Monaco side could expose his team to costly counterattacks.
Coach S茅bastien Pocognoli’s Monaco has 13 goals in the past six games. Although two of those have been defeats, the attack is looking much sharper.
Monaco went 2-0 up inside 20 minutes against PSG last week, only for clumsy defending to allow PSG back into the game. Against Lens on Saturday, Monaco overturned a 2-0 deficit with a three-goal burst in 10 second-half minutes.
PSG’s defense looks weaker than last season 鈥� conceding against Monaco after just 55 seconds 鈥� and is not helped by uncertainty over the goalkeeper.
鈥淭he team can improve defensively at the moment,鈥� Luis Enrique said at a pre-game news conference. 鈥淲hen you are 2-0 down within 20 minutes it normally ends in disaster. But we have shown this season and last that we can overcome any difficulty.”
Since Gianluigi Donnarumma鈥檚 departure, Luis Enrique has alternated between Matvei Safonov and summer signing .
Slick combination
Pairing Ansu Fati and Folarin Balogun in attack could be Pocognoli鈥檚 best option.
Fati has nine goals in 20 games, including a fine lob in against on Saturday.
The former has been hampered by minor injuries this season. He went on as a substitute against Lens but Pocognoli is likely to start him against PSG.
Balogun has also dealt with injuries but finally seems fully fit. The American forward’s against PSG last week and his opportunist strike against Lens showed he is back in form.
Their movement up front, allied to the runs of attacking midfielder , may stretch PSG’s defense and leave space for midfielders behind.
and can dribble at speed, while Balogun鈥檚 versatility allows him to play wide or through the middle.
Risk of counterattacks
Rapid counterattacks are Monaco’s strength.
When Monaco beat PSG 1-0 in Ligue 1 in November the goal came from a quick break. On Saturday, the third goal against Lens was a slick counterattack ending with Fati’s lob.
PSG showed vulnerability to quick balls played behind the full backs when it this month; while Monaco’s first goal last Tuesday saw left back Caio Henrique finding space behind right back Achraf Hakimi and Aleksandr Golovin crossing for Balogun to head in.
Henrique and right back Vanderson both like to attack. This may force Luis Enrique to instruct his own attacking full backs, Hakimi and left back Nuno Gomes, not to push up too much.
Demb茅l茅 injured
PSG will be without star forward Ousmane Demb茅l茅
The Ballon d鈥橭r winner with a calf injury last Tuesday and missed Saturday鈥檚 home game against Metz in Ligue 1.
Demb茅l茅 has been and has hardly played a full season during his career, with setbacks affecting his six seasons at Barcelona before he joined PSG.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how long (Demb茅l茅 will be out for), it depends on certain things,” Luis Enrique said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 want to take any risks. It鈥檚 not serious but we need to be patient.鈥�
Fabi谩n Ruiz remains sidelined. The Spain midfielder has not played for PSG since hurting his left knee on Jan. 20 in the 2-1 defeat at Sporting Lisbon.
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