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Real confront PSG to confirm last 16 berth


Bangladeshpost
Published : 25 Nov 2019 06:21 PM | Updated : 07 Sep 2020 03:52 PM

Real Madrid will be looking to join Paris Saint-Germain in the knockout stage of the Champions League when the two teams meet at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night, report agencies.

PSG have already secured their passage into the last-16 and would claim first spot in Group A with a point in Madrid, while a home victory guarantees Los Blancos a spot in the next round.

Madrid's 2019-20 Champions League campaign did not exactly get off to the most ideal of starts when considering that they lost 3-0 at PSG in their opener before drawing 2-2 at home to Club Brugge.

Back-to-back wins over Galatasaray have moved Zinedine Zidane's side onto seven points, though, and they are in a very strong position to advance to the last-16 stage of the competition.

Meanwhile, PSG have a perfect record from their four Champions League matches this season, posting four straight victories against Madrid, Galatasaray and Brugge to top the section with 12 points.

A point at the Bernabeu would see them advance as group winners. Zidane has no fresh injury concerns from the clash with Sociedad on Saturday night, but the Frenchman has not been able to recover any of the four players on the sidelines.

Indeed, Marco Asensio, Nacho and James Rodriguez are all still out with knee injuries, while a fractured toe will see Lucas Vazquez miss out on a spot in the selection once again.

There are not expected to be too many changes from the side that faced Sociedad, although Toni Kroos is pushing for a return in the middle of the park at the expense of Federico Valverde.

Rodrygo Goes could again keep out the likes of Vinicius Junior and Bale to feature alongside Eden Hazard and Karim Benzema in attack, although Isco is another option for Zidane.

As for PSG, the French side could welcome back key midfielder Marco Verratti, who is reportedly winning his battle to overcome a knee injury in time for the European affair.

Neither Thilo Kehrer or Ander Herrera are expected to recover from injuries, but Mbappe and Neymar should both feature having missed the clash with Madrid earlier this season through injury and suspension.

The club's all-time leading scorer Edinson Cavani is now fit and available after overcoming his fitness problems, but Angel Di Maria could be selected in the final third alongside Mbappe and Neymar, with Marquinhos and Idrissa Gueye joining Verratti in the middle of the park.