Athletic Club vs Paris Saint-Germain preview: Champions League holders out to move within touching distance of knockout place | OneFootball

Paris Saint-Germain visit Athletic Club in the Champions League on Wednesday.

The hosts drew 0-0 with Slavia Prague in their last outing, while PSG triumphed 5-3 over Tottenham Hotspur.

Off the back of a 1-0 defeat against Monaco seven days prior, PSG returned to winning ways in grand style following a 5-0 demolition of Stade Rennais.

That was a fourth win in five outings for Luis Enrique’s men since November’s 2-1 defeat to Bayern Munich, which remains their only Champions League defeat this term.

Sitting second in the league phase with 12 points, three behind leaders Arsenal, Les Parisiens are on the verge of confirming at least a place in the play-offs.

However, a top-eight finish remains the target to secure automatic qualification for the knockout stage.

After defeating Barcelona 2-1 in October, Wednesday’s visitors have already got the better of Spanish opposition this term and will be confident of another positive result here.

Returning to Europe’s premier club competition for the first time since 2015 has not gone as planned for Bilbao.

Ernesto Valverde’s men have collected just four points from five matches and are currently two points outside the play-off places.

A defeat in their upcoming encounter could all but spell the end of their Champions League journey.

Three days after a 3-0 defeat to Real Madrid, Los Leones returned to winning ways by beating Atletico Madrid 1-0 on Saturday, and this should give them a huge confidence boost.

With clean sheets in two of their last three home matches, keeping things tight at the back is imperative for the hosts if they are to boost their chances of upsetting the odds.