Paris Saint Germain will not be given a weekend off by Ligue 1 ahead of their Champions League clash against Liverpool in April.
The French league has become well known for handing rest weeks to its clubs competing in big European ties, with PSG benefitting from the scheme before playing Chelsea in the last-16.
However, according to French-based broadcaster Matt Spiro, the European champions will face a potential title-decider in between their two games against Liverpool.
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The UEFA Champions League trophy is displayed on a plinth before the final.
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PSG to face Lens in Ligue 1 decider
In recent seasons, PSG’s advantage in the Champions League has often been two-fold. Not only are they regularly afforded rests before big ties, but they are usually walking Ligue 1 as well, allowing for rotation and the saving of legs at this stage of the campaign.
Clearly, Liverpool – and most other European sides – do not have this luxury, making the playing field slightly less level whenever PSG reach the latter stages of the Champions League.
Chelsea were frustrated by this ahead of their last-16 tie, when they faced a draining Premier League clash with Newcastle in between the two European games, while PSG had a full week to prepare.
Luis Enrique and Arne Slot shake hands after the UEFA Champions League last-16 match between PSG and Liverpool at the Parc des Princes.
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According to Spiro, though, this time will not be the same. Instead, Luis Enrique’s team face a potential title-decider away at Lens on Saturday, April 11th.
“Encouraging news for Liverpool: Unlike the Chelsea tie – when PSG got their league game against Nantes postponed between legs – Luis Enrique’s side have a potential title decider in Lens between Liverpool games,” he says on X.
“And Lens won’t be accepting any requests for postponement.”
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With Lens currently sitting just one point behind PSG in the Ligue 1 table, this is a genuinely massive game for Enrique.
There are still two league fixtures before they meet, so there could still be less significance attached to it but, for now, it looks like their three biggest games of the season so far come back-to-back.
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Arne Slot reacts with frustration during Liverpool's UEFA Champions League last-16 second-leg against Galatasaray at Anfield (Credit: Getty Images/Carl Recine).
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Carl Recine
While they will likely still enter the Liverpool tie as favourites, this could really help Arne Slot’s team.
They will have a game of their own, of course, but a 5.30pm kick-off against Fulham at Anfield is a much kinder fixture than it could have been.
Liverpool must take all the help they can get in their bid to overrun the European champions, and the fact that PSG face a potentially demoralising, and at the very least intensive, match against their nearest rivals before a visit to Anfield could be the small margin which makes the difference.
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