On Saturday afternoon, Paris Saint-Germain and Stade Rennais compete in Shenzhen in China in the battle for the Trophée des Champions. Do Parisians succeed for the seventh year in a row or can Stade Rennais surprise again?
Paris Saint-Germain:
In the past seasons, Paris Saint-Germain managed to get its eyes on each other with large transfers every summer, but this summer the Parisians, after failing to attract Matthijs de Ligt, remained reasonably formidable on the transfer market. With Ander Herrera, Idrissa Gueye and Pablo Sarabia, midfield was strengthened considerably, but on the other hand young talents such as Christopher Nkunku, Moussa Diaby and Timothy Weah will no longer play for PSG this season. Even routiniers such as Dani Alves and Gianluigi Buffon are no longer available to Thomas Tuchel this season.
Because the selection of Parisians has not undergone too many changes this summer, several players already seem to be assured of a place in the Tuchel team. If Edinson Cavani, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar Jr. be fit, they will be assured of a basic place. In the back most places also seem to be forgiven, so that the biggest puzzle lies in midfield. Angel Di Maria, Julian Draxler and Leandro Paredes, among others, will not be kicking off every match just like last season, and not this Saturday either.
Stade Rennais:
Last season, Stade Rennais won the Coupe de France at the expense of Paris Saint-Germain, which means that Julien Stéphan’s team can play in the Europa League this season. Last season, the team managed to make it to the eighth finals in which Arsenal turned out to be a size too big. Following the previous season, Stade Rennais has ambitious goals this season: surviving the group stage of the Europa League and once again bringing in European football. Given the developments on the transfer market, the question is whether this will be possible for les Rouges et Noirs.
Only for the attackers Flavien Tait and M’Baye Niang money was put on the table last summer, but on the other hand a transfer fee was only received for two players (Benjamin André and Brandon Llamas). Star player Hatem Ben Arfa left the team from northwestern France in a transfer-free manner and also strongman Edson Andreé Sitoe – aka Mexer – did not make any money. As the transfer market is still open until 2 September, we can undoubtedly expect one or more purchases.
