French clubs are making their debut in the Champions League this week. Committed to a new format, they are starting their campaign with very different ambitions. An overview.
PSG, a locomotive on time?
Like every season, Paris Saint-Germain is the most anticipated French club on the star track. Unlucky semi-finalist against Borussia Dortmund (0-1, 0-1) last year, the capital club is initially aiming for seeded status, synonymous with direct qualification for the round of 16. To do this, it will have to finish in the top eight of the unique and unprecedented league phase (with 36 teams). An achievable mission but far from simple given the schedule that awaits the Parisians, with the big names Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Arsenal and Atlético Madrid on the program. At the end of the 4th day, PSG will have already hosted three times at the Parc des Princes, including Girona and PSV Eindhoven, two affordable opponents. At the beginning of November, it will know more about its ambitions while its perfect start to the season in Ligue 1 (four matches, four victories) suggests great European evenings.
Player to watch: Ousmane Dembélé
Orphaned by Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé has assured that he wants “try even harder” his luck and “be a little more personal” in front of goal (after France-Belgium 3-1, September 9). This was done last Saturday during the reception of Stade Brestois (3-1), who suffered the decisive double from “Dembouz”. New leader of the Parisian attack, in the company of Bradley Barcola, the French international can no longer hide and will be the number 1 weapon of PSG to shine on the continental scene. His successful start to the season in Ligue 1, in both play and statistics (3 goals and 2 assists in 4 matches), requires confirmation during the gala matches. See you this Wednesday (9 p.m.) against Girona, a novice in the competition.
The stat to remember: 12
For 12 years (and the 2012-2013 season), PSG has systematically exited the group stage of the Champions League, getting used to the last 16 stage. And this season, more than ever, the reigning French champion has all the cards in hand to reach the final phase, which reserves play-offs (equivalent to the last 16) for the teams ranked from 9th to 24th place in the league phase. Seeing the Parisians finish in the bottom eleven of the ranking (between 25 and 36) would be a sporting disaster for the club and Ligue 1. An improbable scenario that Luis Enrique and his men would avoid by winning at least four of the eight scheduled matches.
The PSG calendar:
- Day 1. Wednesday, September 18 (9 p.m.): PSG – Girona
- Matchday 2. Tuesday, October 1 (9 p.m.): Arsenal – PSG
- Day 3. Tuesday, October 22 (9 p.m.): PSG – PSV
- Day 4. Wednesday, November 6 (9 p.m.): PSG – Atletico Madrid
- 5th day. Tuesday, November 26 (9 p.m.): Bayern Munich – PSG
- 6th day. Tuesday, December 10 (9 p.m.): Salzburg – PSG
- 7th day. Wednesday, January 22 (9 p.m.): PSG – Manchester City
- 8th day. Wednesday, January 29 (9 p.m.): Stuttgart – PSG
Federico Pestellini / PANORAMIC
Also readBroadcast, favorites, UEFA coefficient… 10 questions about the Champions League
AS Monaco, an ambitious comeback
2nd in the championship last season, AS Monaco has not played in the Champions League since 2018-2019. That's an eternity for the club from the Principality, which at the time completely missed its campaign by finishing last in its group with just one point (behind Club Bruges, Atlético Madrid and Dortmund). This time, the Monegasques hope to play the spoilsport by at least scraping a ticket for the final phase. Their homogeneous calendar (see below) promises spectacular and undecided matches. Starting with the opening clash against FC Barcelona, Thursday evening (9 p.m.) at Louis-II, which will immediately plunge the young guard of the Rock (Ben Seghir, Akliouche, Camara, etc.) into the deep end.
Player to watch: Denis Zakaria
He is ASM's “Champions League” player and the key element of Adi Hütter's system. With the captain's armband around his arm, Denis Zakaria has impressed since the restart of Ligue 1. In addition to his leadership and his midfield work, the Swiss international scores goals (two against Lens and Auxerre). There is no doubt that a successful campaign for Monaco will require accomplished performances from him, he who has already played in the C1 with Borussia Mönchengladbach, Juventus and Chelsea.
The stat to remember: 16
April 19, 2017. This is the date of AS Monaco's last victory in the Champions League. That evening, Radamel Falcao, Kylian Mbappé, Valère Germain and company dominated Borussia Dortmund (3-1) in the quarter-final return at Louis-II. Needless to say, a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then. The club from the Rock is now on 16 games without a win in the C1, group stage and preliminary rounds combined. The last two campaigns in 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 (three points accumulated in 12 games) were long paths of suffering. It is up to the new red and white generation to restore the reputation of a club used to shining in the past on the continental stage.
AS Monaco Calendar
- Day 1 – Thursday, September 19 (9 p.m.): AS Monaco – FC Barcelona
- 2nd day – Wednesday, October 2 (9 p.m.): Dinamo Zagreb – AS Monaco
- Day 3 – Tuesday, October 22 (6:45 p.m.): AS Monaco – Red Star Belgrade
- 4th day – Tuesday, November 5 (9 p.m.): Bologna – AS Monaco
- 5th day – Wednesday, November 27: AS Monaco – Benfica
- 6th day – Wednesday December 11 (9 p.m.): Arsenal – AS Monaco
- 7th day – Tuesday January 21 (6:45 p.m.): AS Monaco – Aston Villa
- 8th day – Wednesday January 29 (9 p.m.): Inter Milan – AS Monaco
LOSC has nothing to lose
The last French representative to qualify for this phase of the league, LOSC has already outperformed on the scale of Ligue 1. Since Bruno Genesio's team got out of the trap of the preliminary rounds (by eliminating Fenerbahçe and Slavia Prague), where Monaco and OM recently failed. Now in the big league, what can Lille hope for? The legitimate objective will be, like ASM, a qualification for the play-offs even if the full draw reserved some very heavyweights for the Dogues. Sporting Portugal, Real Madrid, Atlético, Juventus, Liverpool… Unclassified passes stand in their way from the start. It remains to be seen whether the outsider costume will sublimate the Northerners, beaten last Friday in Saint-Etienne (0-1).
Player to watch: Jonathan David
How high is Jonathan David's ceiling? Transferable this summer, the Canadian ultimately stayed at LOSC, due to a lack of tempting offers in particular. Because despite his reliability in front of goal (19 goals last year in Ligue 1, 24 in 2022-2023), David continues to slip through the radars of the European giants. This Champions League therefore comes at the right time for the 24-year-old striker, who will be responsible for converting Lille's key moments.
The stat to remember: 91.5
According to statistics specialist Opta, Lille have inherited the 4th worst possible draw behind Feyenoord, Liverpool and… PSG. With a difficulty index calculated at 91.5 (out of 100), the schedule that awaits Bruno Genesio's team is daunting and could (almost) not be worse. In this context, the Dogues will not have the right to make a mistake, at home, against the Austrians of Sturm Graz and the Dutch of Feyenoord.
The LOSC calendar
- 1st day – Tuesday September 17 (9 p.m.): Sporting Portugal – Lille
- 2nd day – Wednesday October 2 (9 p.m.): Lille – Real Madrid
- 3rd day – Wednesday October 23 (9 p.m.): Atlético Madrid – Lille
- 4th day – Tuesday, November 5 (9 p.m.): Lille – Juventus
- 5th day – Wednesday, November 27 (9 p.m.): Bologna – Lille
- 6th day – Wednesday December 11 (6:45 p.m.): Lille -Sturm Graz
- 7th day – Tuesday January 21 (9 p.m.): Liverpool – Lille
- 8th day – Wednesday January 29 (9 p.m.): Lille – Feyenoord
Brest, Little Thumb among the giants
A surprise guest on the panel, Stade Brestois takes on the role of the “bonus” club in the French ranks. One or more victories would be historic, a simple qualification for the play-offs would be an immense feat. But nothing prevents Brest from dreaming higher. Especially since they will discover the competition against another “small” team, Sturm Graz, this Thursday (9 p.m.) at the Roudourou in Guingamp. The rest of the events resemble an obstacle course, until the historic reception of Kylian Mbappé's Real Madrid, at the end of January 2025. Generally, French teams surprise when the pressure is minimal on their shoulders. Lens showed the way last season, it's up to Brest to play.
Baptiste Autissier / PANORAMIC
Player to watch: Romain Del Castillo
In the prolonged absence of Pierre Lees-Melou, convalescent with fibula and “not ready at all” to play according to his coach Éric Roy, Romain Del Castillo assumes his responsibilities. The former Lyonnais has been decisive in recent outings by scoring from a penalty in Paris (1-3) and against Saint-Etienne (4-0). And beyond the numbers, the left-hander remains the hub of the Brest game, his duo on the right with Kenny Lala working wonderfully. To exist in C1, Stade Brestois is also looking for experience. This is good news, Del Castillo is one of the eight players in the squad, along with Jordan Amavi, Jonas Martin and Massadio Haidara, who have already known the famous music of the Champions League. An experience that dates back to his time at Stade Rennais during the 2020-2021 season, Julien Stéphan's team was eliminated in the group stage by Chelsea, FC Seville and Krasnodar.
The stat to remember: 0
A first. In its 74-year history, Stade Brestois has never played a single European Cup match. This is therefore unprecedented, the supporters of Ty' Zefs will discover the thrill of Europe this week, a dream that will continue until at least the end of January. For half of the Brest squad too (13 players out of 26), the competitions of the Old Continent were unknown until now. Illustrating this leap into the unknown, goalkeeper Marco Bizot, Brest's most capped player at European level, has only played 3,240 minutes with AZ Alkmaar and Genk in the Europa League.
The Stade Brestois calendar
- Day 1 – Thursday, September 19 (9 p.m.): Brest Stadium – Sturm Graz
- 2nd day – Tuesday October 1 (6:45 p.m.): Salzburg – Brest Stadium
- 3rd day – Wednesday October 23 (6:45 p.m.): Brest Stadium – Bayer Leverkusen
- 4th day – Wednesday, November 6 (9 p.m.): Sparta Prague – Brest Stadium
- 5th day – Tuesday November 26 (9 p.m.): FC Barcelona – Brest Stadium
- 6th day – Tuesday December 10 (9 p.m.): Brest Stadium – PSV
- 7th day – Wednesday January 22 (6:45 p.m.): Shakhtar Donetsk – Brest Stadium
- 8th day – Wednesday January 29 (9 p.m.): Brest Stadium – Real Madrid
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