‘60/40 in favour of Les Parisiens’ – France reacts to PSG’s ‘favourable’ draw against Barcelona

For Paris Saint-Germain, their reaction to the Champions League draw was telling. The scars of the Remontada feel long gone, drawing Barcelona in the quarter-finals was met with a sense of relief that they had avoided less ‘favourable’ opponents. 

The clubs have met 12 times with a perfect record of four wins each and four draws. Their last contest in 2020/21 a 5-2 win on aggregate for Les Parisiens was an exorcism of the Remontada that had preceded it. 

And while PSG will be wary of the talent within this Barcelona team, they will be content to face a Barcelona side far removed from the one that had humiliated them in the 2016/17 season by overturning a 4-0 deficit with an incredible 6-1 victory. 

A Barcelona side that had only reached this stage in the competition after it had made hard work of defeating a Napoli team onto its third manager of the season. 

‘PSG are considered the favourites against Barcelona, even in Spain‘ 

Speaking to RMC Sport, Fred Hermel a Spanish football specialist, assessed the game as such, “I’m sure that on the Barcelona side, they’re not happy to come across PSG… It’s 60/40 in favour of PSG. In Barcelona, there is a mix of experienced players and youth, experience is on the PSG side.”

He continued, “Yes, it’s a good draw. We know that in three weeks, Barcelona will recover Frenkie de Jong who is the cog in midfield… But honestly, today, PSG are considered the favourites against Barcelona, even in Spain.” 

“Barcelona beat a weak Napoli side. This Barcelona is in recovery even if there are great players. Collectively, it is rare to have seen a Barcelona as effective as Tuesday evening (during the return match against Napoli). It’s a good draw for PSG.” Hermel concluded. 

GFFN | Nick Hartland