This Tuesday, December 10, Paris Saint-Germain (25th) take on RB Salzburg (32nd) at the Red Bull Arena (kick-off 9pm, broadcast on Canal+Foot in France) as part of Matchday 6 of the Champions League 2024-2025 league phase. And as before every match, here’s a presentation of the Parisians’ opponents.
The Salzburg situation –
A major Austrian club founded in 1933, Autria Salzburg only changed its name to “Red Bull Salzburg” in 2005 when the famous brand became an investor. A takeover that has pushed the club to the top, with recurrent appearances in European competitions and titles on the national scene (3 championships before 2005, 14 since and 9 Austrian Cups).
A crisis is looming, however, as coach Pepin Lijnders, a former assistant to Jürgen Klopp at Liverpool, is unable to achieve the expected results in the league, while finishing 32nd out of 36th in the Champions League. Most worrying of all is 5th place in the Austrian Bundesliga, 13 points behind first-placed Sturm Graz. And that’s not helped by the large number of injuries.
There are also questions about a mercato with very young recruitment, while there have been several important departures.
The 2024 summer mercato –
Source: Transfermarkt.
Departures:
Arrivals :
Key statistics –
This season, Salzburg is among the 32nd best attacks (along with PSG…) in the Champions League with 3 goals scored (the 1st, FC Barcelona, is at 18, and the last, Bologna, is at 1), and is among the 32nd best defenses with 15 goals conceded (Inter Milan has the best defense with 0 goals conceded, the last, Slovan Bratislava, is at 18).
Austria’s top scorer is Karim Konaté (20-year-old striker) and with 2 goals, he’s among the 26th in the Champions League (the first in the LDC is Robert Lewandowski with 7 goals). Oscar Gloukh (20-year-old attacking midfielder) is the Austrian club’s best passer with 2 assists, ranking 9th in the competition (Igor Paixão and Mohamed Salah are first with 4 assists).
Last 5 Salzburg matches –
Only PSG’s opponent’s possession is shown and Salzburg’s shots are put first (when data is available).
23/11/2024 (Bundesliga) – Salzburg/LASK : 1-2. In 4-2-3-1. 67% possession. 22 shots, including 3 on target, against 9 shots (1 on target).
26/11/2024 (Ligue 1) – Leverkusen/Salzburg: 5-0. In 4-3-3. 37% possession. 7 shots including 2 on target against 29 shots (13 on target).
30/11/2024 (Ligue 1) – Hartberg/Salzburg: 1-1. In 4-2-3-1. 58% possession. 24 shots, including 9 on target, against 2 shots (1 on target).
04/12/2024 (Ligue 1) – Salzburg/Hartberg: 4-0. In 4-2-3-1. 52% possession. 20 shots, including 10 on target, against 11 shots (1 on target).
07/12/2024 (Ligue 1) – Salzburg/Rapid Vienna: 2-2. In 4-3-3. 47% possession. 20 shots including 7 on target versus 17 shots (12 on target).
The squad and probable line-up.
Out – Konaté, Piatkowski, Terzic, Morgalla, Kjaergaard, Edmund Baidoo, Fernando (injuries), Gadou, Diakité (not registered).
Press team in 4-3-3 (L’Equipe):
Nene – Ratkov – Yeo
Gloukh – Gourna-Douath – Bidstrup
Guindo – Bajcetic – Baidoo – Dedic
Schlager
Salzburg’s style of play.
Dominant against the “smaller” teams, Salzburg struggled against the bigger ones. The idea is always to attack and take chances, even if it means shooting from outside the box. This is often achieved by pressing high up the pitch.
We can expect a more defensive team against PSG, no doubt due to a certain compulsion. But we’ll have to be wary of their fast-paced offensives and energy at home. Even if they are missing some key players, including Konaté (the team’s top scorer in the Champions League), who is injured. It’s up to the Parisians not to let themselves be taken by surprise, and to be effective at last.
