The UEFA Champions League final between PSG and Inter Milan on Saturday will be intriguing and the predicted lineups are fascinating as two teams with totally different styles collide in Munich to be crowned champions of Europe.
MORE — Watch PSG vs Inter Milan, live updates, analysis
PSG boss Luis Enrique has created a masterpiece with his young side, as their free-flowing football and intense pressing has been a joy to watch in the knockout rounds of the Champions League. French champs PSG are chasing their first-ever Champions League title and are the favorites heading into this game, so there’s a lot of pressure on this talented young group.
Inter Milan’s Simone Inzaghi has once again worked wonders with his experienced side as the Italian giants have reached their second Champions League final in the last three seasons. Inter will look to limit PSG’s pace out wide and have shown they are clinical when they get a chance on the counter. Plenty of key players have been rested in recent weeks as they just lost out on the Serie A title to Napoli on the final day of the season.
Below is a look at the PSG vs Inter Milan predicted lineups, plus the latest team news and analysis.
PSG predicted lineup
——- Donnarumma ——
—- Hakimi —- Marquinhos —- Pacho — Mendes —-
—— Neves — Vitinha —— Ruiz ——
——— Doue ——— Dembele —— Kvaratskhelia ——
The back four and midfield trio picks itself and we focus a lot on PSG’s attack, but it is their solid base and the superb form of goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma which has made such a huge difference in their run to the final. In midfield Neves, Vitinha and Ruiz are the heartbeat of this side and keep the ball so well, but also keep PSG so high up the pitch because they win the ball back so quickly. The main selection dilemma Luis Enrique has is who starts out wide. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia will start on the left flank as the small issue which kept him out of the French Cup final win last weekend is nothing to be concerned about. But it is between Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola on the right and the latter scored twice in the cup final win and both of these youngsters bring direct running and mesmeric skills. Out wide is where the key individual battles will be as Inter’s wing-backs Federico Dimarco and Denzel Dumfries get up and down the pitch and will look to pin back PSG’s young wingers. Ousmane Dembele has fully recovered from his recent hamstring injury and will start centrally up top and whoever starts in PSG’s front three will drift around and interchange to cause Inter’s defense problems.
Inter Milan predicted lineup
——- Sommer ——
—— De Vrij —- Acerbi —— Bastoni ——
—- Dumfries —- Barella —- Calhanoglu —- Mkhitaryan —- Dimarco —-
—— Martinez —— Thuram ——
The 3-5-2 system has worked a treat for Simone at Inter and gives them so much defensive balance. We didn’t see much of that defensive solidity against Barcelona because it was absolute chaos and Barca took so many risks and overloaded certain areas. PSG will look to do something similar and it’s crucial Inter’s wing backs Dumfries and Dimarco not only track back but also attack to stop the threat of PSG’s flying wingers. Stefan De Vrij could come in to start for Yann Bisseck who is struggling with an injury and he will slot in nicely alongside Acerbi and Bastoni but there could be some concern about a lack of pace in the back three. The experience in midfield is incredible with Calhanoglu and Mkhitaryan so good at keeping the ball and dictating the tempo of the game and they will not be afraid of inviting the press from PSG and playing around it. That’s when Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez come into their own up top as Thuram will run the channels and hold it up and Martinez is so good at timing his runs to perfection and is a clinical finisher. Dumfries has been a revelation in terms of goals and assists and his battle against Nuno Mendes down Inter’s right flank will be epic. Another key factor is that Simone is so good at getting his subs right. We can expect Carlos Augusto, Davide Frattesi and Mehdi Taremi to all play a big part off the bench to keep Inter’s tempo high and remain a threat on the counter.
