PSG v Man City Tips: Best bets for UCL semi
Parc des Princes plays host to the first leg of the Champions League semi-final where PSG welcome Manchester City live on BT Sport with an 8pm kick off. Both teams are desperate for their first Champions League crown with one of these sides guaranteed to be in the final come the 29th May.
Les Parisians managed to leave the Allianz in the first leg against Bayern with a 3-2 victory which stood them in great stead to reach the semi-finals, ultimately prevailing on away goals as the tie ended 3-3. After a huge scare for Pochettino with Mbappe seemingly injured late on against Metz at the weekend, he is likely to start and has been deemed fit. Key man Marquinhos will remain sidelined for this match after sustaining an injury against Bayern and is yet to recover.
Manchester City looked totally dominant in the EFL Cup final at the weekend which only ended in a 1-0 victory against a lacklustre Spurs side. A late set piece header from Aymeric Laporte put the Citizens ahead and gave them their 4th consecutive League Cup trophy, whilst only allowing the Lilywhites a total of 2 shots in the entire 90 minutes. A fully fit squad yet again for Guardiola will most likely see Stones and Rodrigo back in the starting XI.
A bet that I tipped up recently and has come up trumps regularly is Mahrez and Foden both to register 1 or more shots on target. Both have been exceptional and trusted starters in big games for Pep Guardiola and both are expected to make the starting XI yet again when facing the Parisians on Wednesday night.
Mahrez has had 13 shots on target in his last 9, hitting the target at least once on all 9 occasions. Foden also has an incredible strike rate when it comes to finding the target. He has registered 21 shots on target in his last 16 starts, hitting the target at least once in 14 of those matches. This 6/4 has landed in 5 of their last 6 when making the starting XI and certainly looks great value.
Looking back through Kyle Walker's data and you could be put off backing him for a booking due to him only being booked once this season. He has been solid at the back for Pep and looks set to start; with his extreme pace he will be perfect if anyone is going to keep up with Neymar and Mbappe down that flank.
The flamboyance of Neymar down that left wing could be a huge issue for Walker. The Brazilian is incredible at drawing fouls, managing 53 in his last 11 starts which is a huge 4.8 per match. With the German referee Felix Brych averaging 5 yellows per game in the UEFA Champions League, if Walker does make a few fouls on Neymar, he won’t be afraid to brandish him with a yellow card.
Mahrez to register 2 shots on target is 11/4 which looks a great price to be included in my longshot, copping in 4 of his last 9 starts. Mbappe also has incredible shot on target stats and looks a tasty price get involved at. The Frenchman has registered 2 or more shots on target in 9 of his last 13 starts and priced at 7/4 is another big price to add to the multi.
My last selection for the longshot comes in the form of a booking, but for the Argentine Leandro Paredes. Playing in the centre of the park, he loves to get stuck in and should be kept extremely busy against this high pressing, fast passing Guardiola side. Booked in 8 of his last 15 starts, he looks a nice price at around 2/1 which takes my longshot to over the 40/1 mark!
