Paris Saint Germain - Real Sociedad predictions and free betting tips [14/02/2024]

Today in the context of the first 1/8 final match of the Champions League, "Paris Saint-Germain" will host "Real Sociedad" at their home grounds. Over the past weekend, Parisians beat "Lille" at home with a score of 3:1, whilst the Basques unexpectedly stumbled at home – a loss of 0:1 to "Osasuna".

Predicted Line-ups

Paris Saint-Germain: Donnarumma; Hakimi, Danilo, Marquinhos, Hernandez; Urgate, Zaire-Emery; Dembele, Asensio, Colo Muani; Mbappe.    
Real Sociedad: Remiro; Traore, Subeldia, Normand, Galan; Merino, Subimendi, Mendez; Kubo, Sadik, Barrenetchea.   

Paris Saint-Germain

PSG finished second in their group, only managing a 1:1 draw with "Borussia Dortmund" in the final round. Concurrently in another match, "Newcastle" lost at home to "Milan", and in the event of a "Magpies" victory, Parisians could have ended up third... It's important to note that Luis Enrique's charges have picked up only one point in the last three Champions League away matches, losing 4:1 at St. James' Park and 2:1 at San Siro to "Milan". Yet, since the beginning of the calendar year, "Paris Saint-Germain" has picked up good form: victories in the Coupe de France against "Revel" (0:9) and "Orleans" (1:4), as well as against "Lens" (0:2) in the championship. Then, Parisians beat "Brest" twice (2:2 in Ligue 1 and a 3:1 victory in the Féderation Française de Football 1/8 final), on Saturday they prevailed over "Strasbourg" (1:2) and "Lille" (3:1) in the championship. The capital club unbeaten in 16 encounters in all competitions (12 victories, 4 draws) and leads Ligue 1 with a gap of 11 points from following "Nice".

The hosts can count on Ousmane Dembele, who was disqualified against "Borussia" in the final round of the group stage (accumulation of yellow cards). Ashraf Hakimi has also returned to the club, having dropped out of the Morocco national team in the Coupe d'Afrique des Nations at the 1/8 final stage. Kimpembe and Nuno Mendes are still out in the infirmary, while Kurzawa was not included in the team's UEFA competition application. Besides, Milan Skriniar is injured, and Sergio Rico is still recovering after a serious accident. During the January transfer window, young Hugo Ekitike was sent on loan to Frankfurt. Kylian Mbappe (28 goals, 7 assists), who has 3 goals in this season's Champions League, took a minor injury in the match against "Brest" and rested over the past weekend – he will surely start against "Sociedad". 

Real Sociedad

"Real Sociedad" of Basque was a surprise of this Champions League campaign, who, finishing first in their group and outperforming "Inter Milan", expected a more "easy" opponent in the knockout stage. By the way, with the "Nerazzurri", southerners played a draw both times (1:1 at home and 0:0 away). In their championship, the guests are amongst the top six, however, they have already significantly lagged behind the champions league quartet. Yet, the San Sebastiáns still have chances to triumph in the Copa del Rey, since they oppose "Mallorca" in the semi-final (the first match ended with a 0:0 draw). Last weekend, Imanol Alguacil's charges unexpectedly lost to "Osasuna" in the derby (0:1), and this was the first defeat for "Sociedad" in the last 6 matches in all competitions.

The team is forced to make do without the injured Martin Merquelanz, while Kubo (6 goals, 3 assists in La Liga) returned from the Asian Cup and will most likely start on Tuesday. Among other important absentees are Aichen Munoz (probably missing the rest of the season) and Becker (a winter newbie). There's still uncertainty about Oyarzabal's physical form, defenders Terni, Odriozola, Carlos Fernandez, and Elustondo. Nevertheless, "Real" can boast a creative midfield led by Subimendi, Brais Mendez (3 goals in the Champions League) and Mikel Merino. During the transfer window, the Basque club acquired Javi Galan (Atletico Madrid, on loan) and Becker (now former striker of Union Berlin).

Head-to-Head

These teams have never met each other in history.

Match prediction for Paris Saint-Germain – Real Sociedad

Considering the away results of the Parisians in the group stage (1 point out of 9 possible), it would be beneficial for the hosts to triumph in front of their home crowd before heading to Basque Country. "Paris Saint-Germain" will be able to count on their optimal line-up on Tuesday, whereas the Basques are weakened by injuries and noticeably struggling in recent weeks. I am not expecting a sensation here and I bet on the favourite's victory.