Paris Saint-Germain predicted lineup vs Toulouse - Ligue 1
Reigning Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain host newly promoted Toulouse in the French top flight on Wednesday evening.
PSG haven't lost to a side coming up from the second tier since Lorient recorded a famous victory in January 2021, snatching all three points with a 91st-minute winner despite trailing with just ten minutes left to play.
Here's the XI Christophe Galtier may select to avoid a repeat of that slip-up.
Paris Saint-Germain predicted lineup (3-4-3)
1. PSG XI
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma - When a 16-year-old Donnarumma was thrust into the spotlight as Milan's number one, the club's then-owner Silvio Berlusconi declared: “He’ll be our goalkeeper for next 20 years.” Unfortunately for the Rossoneri, Donnarumma only hung around San Siro for six years.
CB: Sergio Ramos - On the nape of his neck, Ramos has a tattoo which read: “A Lion Never Loses Over The Opinion Of Sheep”. The 36-year-old must have shrugged off any criticism he earned following an injury-laden debut campaign in France.
CB: Marquinhos - Only two members of PSG's squad - Neymar and Kylian Mbappe - have scored more Ligue 1 goals in their careers than the centre-back skipper.
CB: Presnel Kimpembe - The PSG academy product enjoyed what he described as the "trigger of my career" in an accomplished display on his Champions League debut against a Barcelona side in 2017 that contained two of his current teammates.
RWB: Achraf Hakimi - Despite ostensibly spending his entire career as a defender, Hakimi has scored at least two league goals every season.
CM: Vitinha - The Portuguese arrival this summer has won his first four matches as a PSG player by a combined score of 21-3.
CM: Marco Verratti - Unbeaten in all 13 career meetings with Toulouse (11W, D2) - Verratti's largest lossless streak against any club.
LWB: Nuno Mendes - Just three months after turning 18, Mendes became the youngest defender to score for Sporting CP with his debut goal in 2020. The wingback is yet to find the net for PSG.
RW: Lionel Messi - None of Messi's 687 club goals have come within the opening two minutes of a match. However, he did provide the assist for Mbappe's eight-second opener in PSG's last away trip.
ST: Kylian Mbappe - Galtier made the penalty pecking order very clear after last weekend's draw with Monaco. "The hierarchy's been well established: it's Kylian No.1 and Neymar No.2," he insisted in vain, after watching the Brazilian convert from 12 yards after a brief discussion with Mbappe.
LW: Neymar - The division's early goal-getter has found the net in each of his last seven appearances for PSG, his longest scoring streak since the start of 2020.