Athletic will seek to continue with options in San Mamés against the current European champion PSG
With four points in five days and two points from the 24th place that gives the ticket to the sixteen final, Ernesto Valverde's team does not want to give up and wants to stay alive for the last two days.
Gorka Guruzeta during the match against Qarabad.
The Athletic Club will receive in San Mamés the current European champion, the PSG of Luis Enrique Martínez, with the intention of maintaining its options to qualify for the play-off of the qualifiers of the highest continental competition. However, the powerful Parisian team is in a new battle for leadership, although it arrives in San Mamés with significant casualties.
With four points in five days and two points from the 24th place that gives the ticket to the sixteen final, the team of Ernesto Valverde does not want to give up and, even in front of the Parisian team, wants to stay alive for the last two days of the phase.
The first goal of the red-whites for this Wednesday will be to maintain the game that allowed Atlético de Madrid to win in the cathedral on the last day of LaLiga Santander last Saturday.
PSG will be the last of the three strong rivals visiting San Mamés in a week and the sixth of a series of engagements that began with three home matches, the first at Camp Nou, where they beat Athletic (4-0).
In front of Luis Enrique's team, in addition to the victory against Cholo Simeone, Athletic may be encouraged to have Captain Iñaki Williams recovered, not only in sports, but also in social.
Valverde's other big concern is on the back line, as he was injured on Saturday with the casualties of Aymeric Laporteand Aitor Paredes (by cards), he has only one specific player, Dani Vivian. Although he could pull the second team, to play against the Newcastle, for example, he took Ander Izagirre, the eaves Iñigo Lekue will help Vivian.
For the rest, as Iñaki has just emerged from the injury, as Robert Navarro injured his ankle, given the other seven casualties and the good match against Atlético, Valverde, who has a habit of changing teams, does not seem to be making many changes this time except for those forced in the center of the defense.
On the part of the PSG, Ousmane Dembele, the new Golden Ball, will not be coming to Bilbao due to illness. He had not played for seven weeks before due to a spill problem.
- Possible alignments:
Athletic: Unai Simon; Amitchell, Vivian, Lekue, Yuri; Galarreta, Jauregizar; Berenguer, Sancet, Nico Williams; and Guruzeta.
PSG: Safonov; Zaïre-Emery, Marquinhos, Pacho or Zabarnyi, Nuno Mendes or Pacho; Fabian Ruiz, Vitniha, Joao Neves; Barcola, Mbaye or Gonçalo Ramos and Kvaratskhelia.
Referee: Daniel Siebert (Germany).
Stadium: San Mamés.
Time: 21:00
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