Paris Saint-Germain kick off their Coupe de France campaign on Wednesday when they travel to Ligue 2 outfit Caen for the round of 64.
The hosts have already overcome Guingamp to set up a tie with Mauricio Pochettino's men, who are the reigning champions in this competition.
Match preview
Caen's miserable Ligue 2 fortunes continued at the weekend with a 0-0 draw away at fellow mid-table side Amiens - their eighth game in a row without a win in France's second division.
A relatively strong start to the season led to initial hope of a playoff push for the 2020-21 campaign, but having won just one of their last 13 league matches, 11th-placed Caen are now closer to the bottom three than they are to the promotion-chasing pack after 24 matches.
Pascal Dupraz's side will no doubt have one eye on their weekend clash with a Niort side whom they are neck-and-neck with in the standings, but for now, the Ligue 2 outfit will simply hope to avoid a humbling at the hands of PSG in Wednesday's cup battle.
The hosts eased to a 3-1 win over relegation-threatened Guingamp in their first match of the tournament, and they did manage to make the semi-finals during the 2017-18 Coupe de France, where they were ultimately dumped out by PSG.
A shock victory over the capital outfit would see them at least equal their finish in the 2019-20 season, where they were thrashed 5-0 in round four by Montpellier HSC, but it would take a miracle for Caen to pull off a famous giant killing and avoid a swift exit this time around.
The 100th Classique meeting between Marseille and PSG was a much more low-key affair than September's fiery encounter, but Pochettino nevertheless oversaw his second derby victory over Les Olympiens as the champions eased to a 2-0 win against their troubled rivals.
Kylian Mbappe and Mauro Icardi put the game to bed before half time as PSG kept pace with their title rivals, although they remain three points behind a seemingly unstoppable Lille outfit in the race for glory, with Lyon sandwiched in between the two sides after 24 games.
A shock 3-2 defeat to Lorient was nothing more than a temporary blip for Pochettino's side, who have now won six of their last seven across all competitions - keeping five clean sheets in that run - and this game will give the Argentine a chance to rest some key men and hand opportunities to the fringe players with next week's game against Barcelona in mind.
Unsurprisingly, PSG have been the dominant force in the Coupe de France over the past few decades, and they will be out to march to their 14th triumph in the tournament as well as defending their 2019-20 title - which they claimed after beating Saint-Etienne 1-0 in the final - this time around.
The holders have not lost to a lower-league team in the tournament since being sent packing in the 2008-09 last 16 by Rodez, and Caen are winless against PSG since the 2007-08 Ligue 1 campaign - a run of 17 matches without success in any competition.
Caen Coupe de France form: W
Caen form (all competitions): LWLLDD
PSG form (all competitions): WWWLWW
Team News
Caen have a couple of suspension concerns for this showdown, as Nicolas Gioacchini and Jessy Deminguet will both be forced to sit this one out.
Already without experienced goalkeeper Remy Riou, the hosts' defence was depleted further against Amiens following injuries to Prince Oniangue and Jonathan Rivierez during the game.
Nineteen-year-old Alexis Beka Beka could therefore be called upon to man the rearguard against PSG's star-studded attack, while Manchester United loanee Aliou Traore will hope to earn some minutes in midfield.
The one dampening aspect of PSG's Classique victory was Angel Di Maria lasting just 11 minutes before sustaining a muscular problem, and he will certainly not be risked in this game even if he is passed fit.
The winger therefore joins the COVID-positive Abdou Diallo and Timothee Pembele on the sidelines, while Colin Dagba, Ander Herrera and Keylor Navas continue to nurse various injuries.
Pochettino will no doubt ring the changes for this game, meaning that Mitchel Bakker, Moise Kean, Julian Draxler, Danilo Pereira and maybe even Maxen Kapo could feature.
Caen possible starting lineup:
Clementia; Beka Beka, Weber, Mbengue; Yago, Pi, Goncalves, Vandermersch; Zady Sery, Court; Mendy
PSG possible starting lineup:
Letellier; Florenzi, Kehrer, Pereira, Bakker; Kapo, Rafinha, Draxler; Sarabia, Kean, Neymar
We say: Caen 0-4 PSG
PSG will understandably name a much-changed lineup for their trip to the Stade Michel d'Ornano, but Caen's ravaged defence is in for a long evening regardless. Cup competitions offer the perfect stage for giant killings, but we cannot envisage any shocks happening here and are backing the holders to cruise into the next round.
body check tags ::
Previews by email
