PSG's Perfect Run Meets a Lorient Side That Knows How to Shut the Door

Paris Saint-Germain host Lorient at the Parc des Princes on Saturday 28 November, kick-off 19:45 UK time. On paper this looks straightforward. In football, nothing is straightforward. But some things come close.

PSG's Form Is What It Should Be

Five Ligue 1 matches. Five wins. Eleven goals scored, three conceded. PSG beat Lyon 2-0, beat Strasbourg 3-1, beat Le Mans 3-1, beat Marseille 2-1, and beat Stade Brestois 29 1-0. That is the shape of a team that competes. Every single week.

The thing is, it is not just the results. It is the consistency of the attitude. You do not go five for five without standards being enforced on the training ground. That is non-negotiable at a club like PSG. When they switch off, they concede. Three goals against in five matches tells you they are not perfect at the back. But they are doing enough. End of.

They do carry injury concerns heading into this one. Four players are currently listed as out, two of them rated as moderate severity and two as minor. That is not ideal. But listen, PSG have the depth. If they are missing bodies, the next man steps in and does his job. That is what squads are for.

Lorient Are Harder to Break Down Than You Think

Two wins, two draws, one loss from their last five Ligue 1 matches. Lorient beat Monaco 1-0. They beat Paris FC 1-0. They drew 0-0 with Angers. They drew 2-2 with Toulouse. They lost 2-1 to Le Mans. That loss to Le Mans is the one that bothers me. You cannot be dropping points to Le Mans if you want to be taken seriously.

The thing is, Lorient have kept clean sheets in three of those five matches. Sixty per cent. That is not nothing. It tells you they are organised. They are hard to break down when they want to be. They come here with a plan and that plan will involve sitting in, making it ugly, and nicking something on the counter if the chance arrives.

Lorient also carry injuries. They have one player out with a major injury, another with a moderate one. Those absences could stretch their defensive resources at exactly the wrong time.

What the Head-to-Head Tells Us

There is only one recorded meeting between these sides in the supplied data. It finished 2-2. Both teams scored, neither kept a clean sheet. That result shows Lorient are capable of hurting PSG when the gaps appear. It also shows PSG are not guaranteed to shut out a side with a plan and a bit of desire going forward.

Saturday will be different. PSG at home, in this kind of form, with a crowd behind them. The conditions favour the hosts heavily.

The Verdict

PSG win this. I am not interested in debating it. Their desire to keep this run going will be enormous. Lorient will make it uncomfortable for a period. That is what organised lower sides do. But the basics will tell in the end. PSG have more quality, more firepower, and more to play for in terms of momentum.

The one area of genuine uncertainty is the clean sheet. Lorient have shown they can score. PSG have conceded in three of their last five. If Lorient get an early foothold, this could open up. It could be a lively evening.

Back PSG to win. Keep it simple. End of.