Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique brought Bradley Barcola, Warren Zaire-Emery and Achraf Hakimi into his lineup on Tuesday to try and mount a comeback against Barcelona and reach the Champions League semi-final.
Barcola replaced Marco Asensio in attack. Hakimi returned from suspension. Zaire-Emery stepped in for Lee Kang-in from the 3-2 quarter-final first leg defeat in Paris.
Star striker Kylian Mbappe led the attack alongside former Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele, with PSG planning to press from the start according to their Spanish coach, who led the Catalans to the Champions League title in 2015.
Five-time winners Barcelona, who have not lifted the trophy since then, lined up with Pedri in midfield, replacing the suspended Sergi Roberto.
The midfielder had an impressive impact off the bench in Paris but might not be fit enough to complete the 90 minutes having just recovered from injury.
Xavi kept faith in the rest of the side that earned one of Barcelona’s best recent European results, hoping they can take the team to the semi-finals for the first time since 2019.
Teenage duo Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi started, having become the youngest two players to feature in the quarter-finals of the competition last week.
Line-ups:
Barcelona (4-3-3)
Marc-Andre ter Stegen (capt); Jules Kounde, Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, Joao Cancelo; Frenkie de Jong, Ilkay Gundogan, Pedri; Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha
Coach: Xavi Hernandez (ESP)
Paris Saint-Germain (4-3-3)
Gianluigi Donnarumma; Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos (capt), Lucas Hernandez, Nuno Mendes; Warren Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Ousmane Dembele, Kylian Mbappe, Bradley Barcola
Coach: Luis Enrique (ESP)
Referee: Istvan Kovacs (ROU)
AFP
