Newcastle vs Paris SG prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2023-10-03 19:00.
At long last, UEFA Champions League (UCL) football returns to St James’ Park after over two decades, and what a fixture it is for Newcastle United too, with French behemoths Paris Saint-Germain arriving in the North East. This fixture has a geopolitical subplot with the riches of neighbouring Saudi Arabia and Qatar going head-to-head, yet the Geordies will be full of confidence as their side head into this on an incredible run of five straight clean sheets (W4, D1).
You only need to look back to last season for a longer run of Newcastle clean sheets, and with a draw in Milan and a joint-club record 8-0 win making up part of their current run, the Parisiens will have their work cut out to get on the scoresheet. The Magpies do however have a rather tepid record against French opponents (W3, D4, L6), but with a 14-game unbeaten run in home European action under their belts (W9, D5), history just may be on their side.
In a similar vein to their hosts, French champions PSG enter this clash on the back of three straight clean sheets (W2, D1), though they were left massively frustrated in a bore draw against Clermont Foot over the weekend. That result left Luis Enrique’s men floundering in fifth in Ligue 1, yet they may well expect a bounce back here after reaching the knockout stages in each of the last 11 editions of the UCL.
A 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund set them on the path to a 12th straight group stage qualification, yet PSG’s poor 21% win-rate in European away games against English opposition hardly inspires confidence ahead of this trip (W3, D4, L7). Even so, their record across the last 22 European outings is somewhat respectable (W10, D5, L7), even if the holy grail of a UCL trophy continues to elude them.
Players to watch: Proving age is just a number, 33 year-old Kieran Trippier has shone for Newcastle across his last two appearances, posting an 8.9 and a 9.6 Flashscore rating whilst assisting four times! He was part of an England team that lost to France 3-2 in 2017, a game in which PSG’s Ousmane Dembélé was assisted by Kylian Mbappé, the latter of which has scored six goals in 11 H2Hs with English clubs in this competition.
Hot stat: PSG have failed to win seven of their last nine UCL away games, while both teams scored in seven of those outings (W2, D3, L4).