After spending over €350 million on just two players, anything less than a place in the Champions League final would be a failure for PSG. Indeed, the target for this season has always been to reach the pinnacle of European football.
And the only way to do it is by winning the premier competition of European football: the Champions League.
When they met Real Madrid in the first leg of the round of 16 tie, the Blancos used their experience to overpower the French giants by winning the match 3-1. With this result, the Galacticos seem to have rejuvenated their campaign.
There is, however, a lot of chance for PSG to qualify for the next round.
#3 Emery’s job is on the line
The fact that he wasn’t sacked despite blowing away a 4-0 lead to Barcelona in itself was a shocker. It was perhaps a show of trust in the former Sevilla manager—and they further backed it up by signing two of the best players in the world in Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
So now, Emery has to repay that faith by delivering the trophy that the PSG owners want the most. The French Ligue 1 is like a cakewalk for them, which is why the Champions League is the priority for Neymar and co.
#2 Neymar has a point to prove
The whole reason for the Brazilian to leave Barcelona and join the French giants was to establish himself as a contemporary to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He had all the opportunities to win titles at Barcelona, but he wanted to the main man—something that he didn’t enjoy at Barcelona.
Indeed, being second to Messi in Blaugranas meant that he was always going to be second in the Ballon d’Or podium. This is why he left Spain for France. And the first requirement for Neymar to win the Ballon d’Or is to win the Champions League.
The Champions League winner usually goes on to win the Ballon d’Or since the French league doesn’t hold the same importance as the other top leagues, winning against Real Madrid and progressing further is the crux for him.
#1 PSG will play at home
This is perhaps the most significant advantage that the Parisians have. Unai Emery’s men are a very formidable unit at home. Indeed, last season, it was in Parc de Paris where they humiliated and desecrated Barca by beating them 4-0.
They don’t even need such a scoreline to qualify for the next round as just two goals without reply would suffice. And everybody knows that they have the quality to score two goals. Nothing new needs to be said about their attacking line-up of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Cavani.
And against an injury-marred Madrid midfield—they are most probably going to miss Toni Kroos and Luka Modric due to injury—it is all the more possible for Paris-Saint Germain to win the midfield battle against the Galacticos.
Should they do that, they will qualify for the next round.
