Here we are, nearly a month later, facing the decisive game between Chelsea and Paris Saint Germain in the Round of 16. Leg one in Paris saw the two teams draw at 1-1, with goals from Branislav Ivanovic and Edinson Cavani.
For PSG, they need to either win or score two or more goals and hope for a draw – something that won’t be a simple task.
With last week’s victory over West Ham, Jose Mourinho set the record for the fastest manager to record 100 Premier League shutouts (185 league games).
Though the occasion is different, with this being in the Champions League, the objective is still the same for Mourinho and company: don’t concede.
This week, I have PSG writer and Aston Villa season ticket holder Ross Mackiewicz here for a Q&A ahead of leg two.
Something I’m always interested in when talking to opposing fans is how their fandom started. How did you become a PSG fan?
My interest in French football was purely and simply down to one man, Ronaldinho. Following his exploits in the 2002 FIFA World Cup – working in tandem as one part of the fabulous trio with Ronaldo and Rivaldo – he caught my attention as a kid growing up. Playing his trade at the Parc des Princes with PSG, I found myself regularly following his performances each and every week on Eurosport when Ligue 1 games were easily accessible. As my idolisation grew with Ronnie, it made me more and more attached to PSG. Even though 2003 culminated to be one of the club’s worst seasons in modern times, it did not deter my fondness of the club, nor did it with the departure of Ronaldinho to Barcelona. Paris Saint-Germain was always an attraction to me from then on in but my ties grew stronger when I became involved in blogging side of football back in 2010. As become more involved in that I wanted to do something for myself and the lack of English speaking content on Ligue 1 back in those days gave me the brainwave to start 1970 PSG.
You’re also an Aston Villa season ticket holder, at least according to your Twitter bio. How do you balance that? Get any grief from your friends about supporting teams in two different leagues?
Aston Villa is my first love. Being a Brummie and brought up by my Father who has been besotted by the football club ever since he was a boy, he made sure I would be adorning claret and blue. He witnessed those euphoric days of winning the league title and European Cup in successive years whereas I have had to endure more lows than highs in recent seasons. I have held a season ticket at Villa Park for well over a decade in the Holte-End.
Although Ligue 1 and PSG has gained more exposure in recent years my friends are always asking me for the latest news and gossip at the Parc des Princes. This does emphasise that the interest in the French game here in the UK is still behind the other top European leagues. They are very supportive though and it is nice that they show an interest. They will certainly be watching the game tonight!
PSG currently sit at 2nd in Ligue 1, with a record of 15-11-2. Why so many draws?
The inability to kill games off. It has been a problem all season. We can dominate a game territorially for fun but we never go for the jugular and this can come back to haunt us. The best example was the 2-2 draw with Caen a few weeks back. Yes, we had to play that game with nine-men for the last 10 minutes due to injury but the game should have been killed off way before that.
Leg one ended 1-1. What are your thoughts on the first leg?
I thought Paris were fantastic. They showed a lot of desire in the face of adversity, especially as the squad was rocked by a host of injuries and just coming off the back of that disappointing 2-2 draw with Caen. David Luiz making his debut in that holding role for the club was the highlight for me. I thought he was outstanding.
How did either, or both, teams end that game without having someone sent off? Maybe that’s not necessarily a question, just something that blew my mind after the game.
It was a physical contest, Marco Verratti plays on the edge every single game and he caught the referee in a lenient mood on that night. I was surprised that there were only four yellow cards.
With last week’s victory, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho became the fastest manager in Premier League history to record 100 shutouts in league play (185 PL games). If PSG hopes to advance, they’ve got to score at least one. How confident are you going in to this game?
I am more confident now after what transpired in the first-leg but Chelsea’s record at Stamford Bridge is phenomenal. It will take one hell of an effort if Les Parisiens are to make it through but the fact that we have to score a goal may work more to our advantage than last year. We were cagey last season in the quarter-final and it came back to haunt us as Demba Ba scored late on.
Finally, can we get a score prediction and how you think the game will play out?
I have my PSG cap on of course so I am going to go with a 1-1 draw….thus heading into extra-time. I would not be surprised if this heads to a penalty shoot-out to be honest. It is going to be tough but PSG to scrape through….just! But of course I would say that.
I’m going with a 2-0 victory in favor of the home crowd.
Thank you to Ross for helping out. If you want to follow him on Twitter, you can do so here. Also be sure to check out his PSG blog, 1970 PSG.
