Neymar could, but is unlikely to, play his first game for the Ligue 1 champions after a very public fall out with the club
Paris Saint-Germain’s tour of the Far East begins on Saturday, when they tackle Serie A outfit Inter in Macau.
Thomas Tuchel’s side have already had a couple of matches in Germany to sharpen them up, though they were poor in a 1-1 draw with Nurnberg last weekend. They are expected, however, to have Neymar in their squad for the first time this summer after his public falling out with the club.
Inter, meanwhile, have had a tricky start to the summer, losing to Manchester United then going down against great rivals Juventus on penalties on Wednesday.
With neither side at the peak of their powers, who will prevail?
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial) .
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be not be broadcast or available for live streaming.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| n/a | n/a |
Squads & Team News
| Position | PSG squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Areola, Trapp, Innocent, Bulka |
| Defenders | Meunier, Kehrer, Kurzawa, Bernat, Nsoki, Mbe Soh, Zagre, Bakker, Kouassi, Hemans, Yapi, Dagba, Kimpembe, Diallo |
| Midfielders | Sarabia, Verratti, Herrera, Draxler, Aouchiche, Toufiqui |
| Forwards | Mbappe, Jese, Guclu, Cavani, Neymar |
PSG have been training in China since Wednesday. Thomas Meunier, Presnel Kimpembe and Neymar have all been working gingerly and the Brazilian is not expected to have a role to play. Thilo Kehrer has been troubled by a foot issue and seems unlikely to take any part.
Eric Choupo-Moting, Angel Di Maria, Leandro Paredes, Marquinhos and Thiago Silva remain on holiday until July 31, but Edinson Cavani has returned to the a 33-man travelling squad.
| Position | Inter squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Berni, Handanovic, Padelli |
| Defenders | Bastoni, D’Ambrosio, Dalbert, De Vrij, Ranocchia, Skriniar, Ntube, Pirola |
| Midfielders | Agoume, Barella, Borja Valero, Brozovic, Candreva, Gagliardini, Joao Mario, Lazaro, Nainggolan, Perisic, Sensi |
| Forwards | Longo, Politano, Colidio, Esposito, Vergani. |
Mauro Icardi remains frozen out by the club and is training alone back in Italy, while Radja Nainggolan is reportedly pushing to return to Calgliari as he struggles for game time with the Nerazzurri.
Betting & Match Odds
PSG are 8/11 at Bet365 to win this match. Inter are a 3/1 shot, with a draw 11/4.
Match Preview
There is no doubt who the main attraction will be when Paris Saint-Germain face Inter in Macau on Saturday; Neymar is the player that all the locals want to see.
Fans have been crowding the PSG base in Shenzhen in an attempt to glimpse the Brazil international, who has been so evident in the news over the past weeks due to his uncertain future at the Parc des Princes side. Having been publicly rebuked for failing to report for pre-season training in time, he is back in the squad for the first time this summer, and scrutiny will be poured over this performance like never before, though he is not expected to be risked for this clash.
“Every coach wants Neymar in the team, and so do I,” head coach Thomas Tuchel has insisted.
PSG’s need for the ex-Barcelona ace was made clear in their last pre-season outing, when they were held to a 1-1 draw in Nurnberg last weekend, with the team failing to fire offensively aside from Kylian Mbappe, who has returned for pre-season looking as sharp as ever.
Missing many players due to international commitments, the summer has proven a difficult one to negotiate for the Ligue 1 champions, whose competitive campaign begins next weekend with the Trophee des Champions against Rennes, the side that beat them in the Coupe de France final, in Shenzhen.
Inter, meanwhile, have rather less urgency about their preparations. They will not play a competitive game until the middle of August, and even that will be a Coppa Italia match against a lower-league opponent that they should be able to negotiate, even in the rustiest state.
Head coach Antonio Conte, however, wants to see more from his team after they went down on penalties against Juventus, having taken the lead in a 1-1 draw.
“We must always be irritated by defeat,” the ex-Chelsea boss said. “The important thing is that the intensity gets into the minds of the players. We need to play intense football and go to press the opposition. When we’ve got the ball, we try to propose our ideas.
“I am starting to see glimpses of an identity and our way of taking to the field. We must continue along this path: head down, work hard. There is much to do.”
There may be around three weeks before the Nerazzurri take to the field in anger, but Conte wants to get a high-profile scalp under his belt after a victory over Lugano and a defeat to Manchester United previously this summer. Saturday’s match offers his side the perfect opportunity to do just that.
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