A Paris Saint-Germain side seeking a fourth consecutive Ligue 1 win travel to a Monaco side at risk of a fourth consecutive top-flight loss on Saturday afternoon.
The two giants of the French game also posted contrasting results in the Champions League in midweek, when PSG defeated Tottenham Hotspur 5-3 and the Monegasques were held to a 2-2 draw by Pafos.
Match preview
On a night where at least one of Bayern Munich and Arsenal were guaranteed to drop points in the Champions League league phase, PSG reined in their German rivals by coming out on top in an extraordinary eight-goal affair with the Europa League champions.
Twice PSG fell behind, and twice they responded before establishing an unassailable 5-2 lead - thanks in no small part to Vitinha's wonderful hat-trick - enduring that Randal Kolo Muani's second of the evening against his parent club would be inconsequential.
Back to winning ways in Europe and also on course for a fifth straight Ligue 1 title triumph, PSG are on three-game winning sequences both across all competitions and in Ligue 1 alone, strolling to a 3-0 success over Le Havre in their last domestic assignment.
There has not been an air of invincibility around Luis Enrique's side this season, though, as second-placed Marseille and third-placed Lens are just two points below PSG in the Ligue 1 standings, where the champions' advantage at the summit is a vulnerable one.
Nevertheless, the capital giants have strung together an eight-match unbeaten sequence in the top division, and they have also claimed 16 points from a possible 18 at the Parc des Princes, only failing to collect a maximum against Strasbourg.
© Imago / ZUMA Press Wire
The current iteration of PSG are aiming to inflict more misery on Monaco this weekend, but it was a former Parisian who dealt Les Monegasques' European aspirations another blow in the week, and a 38-year-old one at that.
Either side of Takumi Minamino and Folarin Balogun finishes against Pafos, David Luiz became the second-oldest Champions League scorer of all time - only behind a 40-year-old Pepe - and the Cypriot side then remarkably stole a late point via a Mohammed Salisu own goal.
As well as being at risk of early European elimination, Monaco have fallen into an alarming slump in Ligue 1 under Sebastien Pocognoli, who has presided over three straight top-flight losses to Paris FC, Lens and most recently Rennes.
Les Monegasques lost each of the latter two matches by 4-1 scorelines and have plummeted to eighth in the table as a result - 10 points adrift of this weekend's visitors - and the hosts' striking total of 25 goals conceded makes them the worst defensive team in the top half.
To make matters worse for Monaco, Les Monegasques have conceded at least four goals in three of their last five matches with PSG in all tournaments, losing their last three to the Ligue 1 champions by an aggregate scoreline of 9-3.
Monaco Ligue 1 form:
D
W
W
L
L
L
Monaco form (all competitions):
W
L
W
L
L
D
Paris Saint-Germain Ligue 1 form:
D
W
D
W
W
W
Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):
D
W
L
W
W
W
Team News
© Imago / PsnewZ
For the first time since November 4, Ousmane Dembele appeared in PSG colours off the bench against Spurs after recovering from a calf injury, although Desire Doue (hamstring) and Achraf Hakimi (ankle) are still missing.
The latter's fellow full-back Nuno Mendes was replaced at half time against Tottenham by Lucas Hernandez - who got himself sent off late on for a nonsensical elbow on Xavi Simons - but the Portuguese's early withdrawal was only precautionary rather than a sign of anything sinister.
As Hernandez's ban does not apply to domestic football, it would not be a shock to see him start as Enrique hands Mendes a well-earned rest, while Dembele could be fit enough to come back into the XI too.
However, Monaco do have a suspension to contend with for Saturday's game, as Denis Zakaria was given a straight red card in the 4-1 loss to Rennes last time out and is now serving a two-game Ligue 1 ban.
A certain Paul Pogba is a potential replacement for Zakaria in the engine room - the former Manchester United man belatedly made his debut for the club as a late substitute last weekend - but Mamadou Coulibaly is a more likely starter.
In better disciplinary news, Balogun has served his own top-flight suspension, but defensive duo Eric Dier (calf) and Christian Mawissa (hamstring) are in the treatment room.
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Vanderson, Teze, Kehrer, Henrique; Camara, Coulibaly; Akliouche, Golovin, Minamino; Balogun
Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:
Chevalier; Zaire-Emery, Zabarnyi, Pacho, Hernandez; Ruiz, Vitinha, Lee; Kvaratskhelia, Dembele, Barcola
We say: Monaco 1-3 Paris Saint-Germain
Monaco's 13 Ligue 1 games this season have seen a staggering 50 goals - 25 for and 25 against - suggesting that neither goalkeeper should come away from Saturday's clash with a clean sheet.
Pocognoli's injury-hit backline is looking especially vulnerable at this moment, though, and the absence of Zakaria only adds to their rearguard woes, so a trigger-happy PSG have our vote to cruise to victory.
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