Both reeling from painful setbacks on the continental stage, Ligue 1 powerhouses Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain lock horns at the Groupama Stadium on Sunday in the pick of this weekend's fixtures.
Les Parisiens were taken down by the winning machine of Bayern Munich in their most recent Champions League affair, while Les Gones were bested by Real Betis in the Europa League on Thursday.
Match preview
The heavyweight encounter of all heavyweight encounters in the 2025-26 Champions League league phase, something had to give when European champions PSG and a perfect Bayern Munich side collided at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday, when Luis Diaz had a particular bone to pick with the Parisiens.
Part of the Liverpool side that were eliminated from last season's tournament by Luis Enrique's men, the now-Bayern winger earned a slice of revenge with a brilliant brace inside the opening 32 minutes - before his first-half red card - rendering Joao Neves's strike meaningless in a 2-1 winfor the German champions.
Mourning the loss of their unblemished Champions League record for the season, the reigning domestic and UCL holders could also soon be lamenting a defeat that bumps them off top spot in the Ligue 1 table, where they are just two points clear of Marseille and Lens.
The capital giants managed to retain their slender lead at the summit last weekend courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Nice, but not until the fourth minute of second-half injury time did Enrique's men manage to breach the Aiglons' backline through super sub Goncalo Ramos.
PSG nevertheless managed to extend their unbeaten Ligue 1 streak to six matches in that nervous success and boast the best road record of any French top-flight team this season with 11 points, although their only league loss of the campaign so far came away to Classique rivals Marseille.
Lyon head coach Paulo Fonseca on September 25, 2025
Hoping to emulate their Choc des Olympiqes derby foes on Sunday, sixth-placed Lyon will move to within just one point of Enrique's side should they come up trumps on home soil, where their recent feats make for positive reading.
Indeed, six of the hosts' seven matches at the Groupama Stadium in all competitions this season have ended in victory - the outlier being a 2-1 defeat to Toulouse on October 5 - and they are yet to draw a blank in front of goal at the ground in 2025-26.
However, Paulo Fonseca's side have been found wanting on the road of late and come into Sunday's blockbuster on a three-match winless run in all tournaments, drawing at Paris FC and Brest before a 2-0 Europa League loss to Real Betis.
Abde Ezzalzouli and the rejuvenated Antony struck for the Verdiblancos on Thursday evening, when Lyon failed to score for the second match on the bounce after their goalless game at Brest, although a point against Les Pirates was creditable for Fonseca's side given they finished the game with 10 men.
The home side have also found the net in each of their last six matches against PSG in all tournaments, but five of those have ended in defeat to the capital side, who have not been beaten by Lyon away from home since the Thomas Tuchel days of 2019.
Lyon Ligue 1 form:
W
L
L
W
D
D
Lyon form (all competitions):
L
W
W
D
D
L
Paris Saint-Germain Ligue 1 form:
W
D
D
W
D
W
Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):
D
W
W
D
W
L
Team News
Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi pictured on October 24, 2025
PSG's efforts against Bayern were not helped by a crushing double injury blow in the first half, as Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele was forced off in the 25th minute before Enrique withdrew Achraf Hakimi deep into stoppage time.
Both men are now confirmed to be missing several weeks - Hakimi with a sprained ankle from Diaz's red card-worthy challenge and Dembele with a calf problem - and the pair join Desire Doue (hamstring) and Nuno Mendes (knee) on the sidelines.
The champions must therefore cope without a third of their strongest starting XI during an unrelenting run of fixtures, but Enrique will receive one boost on Sunday - Illia Zabarnyi is available again after a Champions League ban.
On Lyon's end, disciplinary problems have plagued Les Gones of late - defender Abner was sent off in the 3-3 draw with Paris before Hans Hateboer followed suit against Brest - and both are still serving two-game domestic suspensions.
Ex-Arsenal man Ainsley Maitland-Niles is expected to fill in at right-back for Hateboer, while Nicolas Tagliafico will hold the fort on the other side of defence.
The hosts are also handicapped by the absences of key attacking duo Ernest Nuamah (ACL) and Malick Fofana (ankle), while former Everton midfielder Orel Mangala is expected to be out until December with his own knee injury.
Lyon possible starting lineup:
Greif; Maitland-Niles, Mata, Niakhate, Tagliafico; Tessmann, Morton; Sulc, Tolisso, Moreira; Satriano
Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:
Chevalier; Zaire-Emery, Zabarnyi, Pacho, Hernandez; Neves, Vitinha, Ruiz; Barcola, Ramos, Kvaratskhelia
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We say: Lyon 0-2 Paris Saint-Germain
Lyon boss Fonseca omitted several key names from his first XI on Thursday with this clash in mind, and the hosts will come up against a PSG side bemoaning the absence of four injured cornerstones.
However, the champions are still working with two days' more rest and are blessed with a fully-fit, menacing midfield, so we still expect Enrique's men to come good.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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