While most French media agree on Paris Saint-Germain’s probable starting XI against Marseille — notably with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia expected to start on the left wing — one small uncertainty still remains ahead of the Trophée des champions.
Kvaratskhelia or Barcola on the Left?
Who will start on the left flank alongside Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué? That is the only real question surrounding PSG’s line-up just hours before kickoff.
Barring a major surprise, Luis Enrique is not expected to renew the experiment of Senny Mayulu on the left wing after an unconvincing showing against Paris FC. With a trophy at stake, the Spanish coach is set to field his strongest possible team.
The choice therefore appears to be between Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Bradley Barcola, with Dembélé starting centrally and Doué on the right. According to L’Équipe and Le Parisien, the Georgian international currently has the edge — a view shared by many observers.
RMC Backs Barcola Instead
However, RMC Sport and its correspondent in Kuwait, Arthur Perrot, believe Barcola could get the nod instead. Whether this is inside information or simply intuition remains unclear, as Luis Enrique has offered no concrete clues during his pre-match press conference or the media-open training session.
Asked about his attacking choices, the PSG coach explained:
“How do I make my attacking choices? It depends on many things — the match, the players’ condition, the workload. When you have to make a decision, you have to judge all of that. Tomorrow is a final, we rested during the Christmas break. Some players are still missing, but tomorrow we’ll see, more or less, the true PSG team.”
Probable Line-Ups
PSG (probable):
Chevalier – Zaïre-Emery, Marquinhos (c), Pacho, Mendes – Neves, Vitinha, Ruiz – Doué, Dembélé, Kvaratskhelia (or Barcola)
On the Marseille side, consensus points toward a 3-4-3 system, though two uncertainties remain: one in defense between Amir Murillo and Benjamin Pavard, and another up front between Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Amine Gouiri.
OM (probable):
Rulli – Pavard (or Murillo), Balerdi (c), Medina – Weah, Højbjerg, Kondogbia, Emerson – Greenwood, Aubameyang (or Gouiri), Paixão
The suspense will end around 6:00 PM CET, one hour before kickoff, when the official line-ups for PSG vs OM are released.