Can PSG win eighth successive league game against Nice?

PSG have been imperious so far this season in the French league, but Nice come into the game in good form.

Having beaten Reims 4-1 on Wednesday evening, PSG will be looking to win for the eighth successive time in Ligue 1 since being taken over by Thomas Tuchel in the summer.

Their only slip-up so far has come in the Champions League, with Roberto Firmino scoring a last-gasp winner for Liverpool a week or so ago.

Patrick Vieira’s Nice, too, won midweek, overcoming Nantes by two goals to one. They come into the game in decent form having won three of their last four matches; some turnaround having picked up just one point from a possible nine to begin the campaign, including losing 4-0 at home to Dijon.

Key battles

Mario Balotelli will be Nice’s major threat and he will need to take his chances when they come. He should relish the battle between himself and two of Marquinhos, Presnel Kimpembe and Thiago Silva, and will be looking to notch against Alfonse Areola (Gigi Buffon has played PSG’s previous two league matches with Areola absent, but the French stopper is the normal number one and will be restored to the line-up).

Adrien Tameze, Pierre Lees-Melou and Wylan Cyprien will be the midfield three for Nice if all three are available; they will face the significant challenge of going head-to-head with PSG’s Adrien Rabiot, Marco Verratti and Angel Di Maria.

Wing-backs in the form of Christophe Jallet, Olivier Boscagli or Youcef Attal, depending on who is selected, will likely spend more time defending than marauding forward, but they can provide the get-out ball when Nice do win possession back.

Nice goalkeeper Walter Benitez will need to be on top form to keep PSG’s front three of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Edinson Cavani quiet.

Previous meetings

Nice’s recent record against champions PSG is very poor, but they did beat the Qatari-owned club 3-1 in April 2017, with Mario Balotelli among the scorers. The Parisians had two players sent off on that day – Thiago Motta and Angel di Maria – but both were given marching orders during second-half stoppage time, when the game was already lost.

Before that, Nice’s previous win came back in 2012, with ten defeats and a draw coming since then. Last season, PSG won 2-1 at Nice, and 3-0 at home.

While Nice have often struggled both home and away against PSG, they have rarely been beaten by a margin of more than three goals, with the most common difference between the sides one or two goals in any given game.