Paris Saint-Germain vs. Bratislava: PSG Need a Lift | OneFootball

It’s hard to believe that the reigning UEFA Champions League champions, Paris Saint-Germain, currently sit 13th in Ligue 1 with just two points from a possible nine. But that is the reality of what Luis Enrique’s team is currently going through.

This Wednesday, Sept. 9, the Parisians host Slovan Bratislava of the Slovak Super Liga on Matchday 1 of the 2026-27 UEFA Champions League league phase. It is a perfect opportunity for the reigning champions to get back on track and perhaps wake their players up so they can get into a competitive rhythm before it is too late and things become complicated domestically.

PSG’s Ligue 1 Start Has Been a Nightmare

Paris Saint-Germain is a difficult team to understand, especially because it plays in a league that perhaps does not always receive the same level of attention from the general public.

Considering at least the last three years, when we talk about PSG, we talk about their performances in the Champions League, their victories over Premier League teams, the immense number of goals from Ousmane Dembélé, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia or Désiré Doué, or the wonderful highlights we see in videos of Vitinha’s performances.

However, every year there are complications, and generally those complications appear in the league phase of the Champions League and during the first half of the season in France. The problem is that this year, it seems they have started on the wrong foot, and those complications began along with the season.

On Matchday 1 of Ligue 1, they drew 2-2 against Stade Rennais, though they trailed 2-0 for much of the match. New signing Ferran Torres, who arrived from Barcelona, made his debut and scored a brace in the 71st and 82nd minutes to level a scoreline that had initially been tilted in the home side’s favor thanks to goals from Sebastian Szymański and Esteban Lepaul.

In the following matchday, they drew 2-2 again, this time against Lille, and the equalizer came even later, with Vitinha scoring in the 91st minute and Marquinhos adding another in the 95th.

One could think this is the blood of a champion and that there is plenty of merit in refusing to accept defeat, but on the third matchday of the French championship, they lost 2-1 to Monaco.

Once again, Marquinhos appeared on the scoresheet in the 31st minute, but it was not enough to overturn goals from Flavio Nazinho and Stanis Idumbo.

Champions League Offers Perfect Reset for PSG

That said, PSG has not forgotten how to have the ball. In fact, if we look at the attack momentum graph and the possession percentages, it becomes clear that PSG has not forgotten how to play the style of football Luis Enrique likes. However, their offensive production appears to have decreased.

Against Rennes, they had 69% possession and an expected goals (xG) tally of 2.16 compared with 0.87 for their opponents. Against Lille, they had 73% possession and an xG of 1.44 compared with 1.27 for the home side. It was similar against Monaco, when they had 68% possession with an xG of 2.32 compared with 0.51 for the Principality side.

Against Slovan Bratislava, there is no reason to think the Parisians will not have a match similar to the ones they have already had in the opening rounds of the French league. Overall, they will likely dominate possession and be the team to find solutions in attack, while the opposition, aware of its inferior status, will prioritize a low block and counterattacks.

The question here is whether Luis Enrique’s side will finally be able to find the ideas necessary to turn their chances into goals and make their advantage count, or whether they will begin their European campaign the same way they began their domestic campaign: on the wrong foot.