Leverkusen vs PSG, UEFA Champions League Preview
Date: February 18, 2014 7:45 PM GMT
KICK-OFF: Tuesday, 7.45pm
Venue: BayArena — Leverkusen
Referee: V. Kassai
Competition: UEFA Champions league 2013-14
PAST MEETINGS:
The two sides have never meet in a competitive match.
TV: on Sky Sports 1, beIN SPORTS 2, beIN SPORTS 5, beIN SPORTS HD 2, beIN SPORTS HD 5
Bayer Leverkusen:
Bayer Leverkusen play host to Paris Saint Germain in the Round of 16 of the Champions League.
In 2002, Bayer Leverkusen reached the final of the Champions League at Hampden Park, where they were eventually defeated by Real Madrid.
Since then, the German club have never gone beyond the last 16 of the competition, although they have an opportunity to end that 12-year wait with a two-legged contest against Paris Saint-Germain, the first of which will take place at the BayArena on Tuesday night.
Leverkusen come into the match having lost five of their last seven games, including a shock home defeat by second-division side Kaiserslautern in the German Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, will be without midfielder Emre Can due to suspension, while Stefan Reinartz (foot) is a doubt. Strikers Eren Derdiyok (foot) and Robbie Kruse (knee) also miss out through injury.
"I'm very happy with the way my team played [against Schalke]. It was very different from Wednesday's game," said former Liverpool player and current Leverkusen coach Sami Hyypia.
"The lads showed a lot of character. We can get a result on Tuesday if we play like that."
Paris Saint-Germain:
Paris Saint-Germain reached the quarter-finals of last season's Champions League under the guidance of Carlo Ancelotti and look to be among the contenders this term as they prepare to face Bayer Leverkusen, PSG have lost three of their six meetings with clubs from the Bundesliga.
Paris Saint-Germain have only lost 1 of their last 13 games in all competitions since the 2-1 loss at Benfica, while they are unbeaten in their last 7 games on their travels. The side have drawn 2 of their last 3 away games including 1-1 at Monaco in their most recent game away from the Parc de Princes, but they have won the other 5 games on this 7 game unbeaten run.
PSG, they have been dealt a blow with the news that Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani will miss the trip with a hamstring injury that he picked up earlier this month.
Laurent Blanc nevertheless has a strong squad to choose from, and they will be boosted by a 3-0 win over Valenciennes at the weekend which preserved their five-point lead at the top of Ligue 1.
"When you win 3-0, you can only congratulate your players," said Blanc.
"Although in truth, I think they've had their minds on Leverkusen for quite a while now.
"We were able to make some changes in order to prepare for Tuesday's Champions League game so that's good."
Blanc will be able to follow the game from the touchline after a one-match ban was suspended by UEFA last week.
Date: February 18, 2014 7:45 PM GMT
KICK-OFF: Tuesday, 7.45pm
Venue: BayArena — Leverkusen
Referee: V. Kassai
Competition: UEFA Champions league 2013-14
PAST MEETINGS:
The two sides have never meet in a competitive match.
TV: on Sky Sports 1, beIN SPORTS 2, beIN SPORTS 5, beIN SPORTS HD 2, beIN SPORTS HD 5
Bayer Leverkusen:
Bayer Leverkusen play host to Paris Saint Germain in the Round of 16 of the Champions League.
In 2002, Bayer Leverkusen reached the final of the Champions League at Hampden Park, where they were eventually defeated by Real Madrid.
Since then, the German club have never gone beyond the last 16 of the competition, although they have an opportunity to end that 12-year wait with a two-legged contest against Paris Saint-Germain, the first of which will take place at the BayArena on Tuesday night.
Leverkusen come into the match having lost five of their last seven games, including a shock home defeat by second-division side Kaiserslautern in the German Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, will be without midfielder Emre Can due to suspension, while Stefan Reinartz (foot) is a doubt. Strikers Eren Derdiyok (foot) and Robbie Kruse (knee) also miss out through injury.
"I'm very happy with the way my team played [against Schalke]. It was very different from Wednesday's game," said former Liverpool player and current Leverkusen coach Sami Hyypia.
"The lads showed a lot of character. We can get a result on Tuesday if we play like that."
Paris Saint-Germain:
Paris Saint-Germain reached the quarter-finals of last season's Champions League under the guidance of Carlo Ancelotti and look to be among the contenders this term as they prepare to face Bayer Leverkusen, PSG have lost three of their six meetings with clubs from the Bundesliga.
Paris Saint-Germain have only lost 1 of their last 13 games in all competitions since the 2-1 loss at Benfica, while they are unbeaten in their last 7 games on their travels. The side have drawn 2 of their last 3 away games including 1-1 at Monaco in their most recent game away from the Parc de Princes, but they have won the other 5 games on this 7 game unbeaten run.
PSG, they have been dealt a blow with the news that Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani will miss the trip with a hamstring injury that he picked up earlier this month.
Laurent Blanc nevertheless has a strong squad to choose from, and they will be boosted by a 3-0 win over Valenciennes at the weekend which preserved their five-point lead at the top of Ligue 1.
"When you win 3-0, you can only congratulate your players," said Blanc.
"Although in truth, I think they've had their minds on Leverkusen for quite a while now.
"We were able to make some changes in order to prepare for Tuesday's Champions League game so that's good."
Blanc will be able to follow the game from the touchline after a one-match ban was suspended by UEFA last week.
