PSG vs Kawasaki Frontale

Paris Saint-Germain’s pre-season tour in Asia gets underway this midweek as they take on reigning J1 League holders Kawasaki Frontale at the New National Stadium in Tokyo.

Fresh from regaining Ligue 1 supremacy from Lille under the stewardship of sacked boss Mauricio Pochettino last season, the star-studded Paris squad prepares for a new life under newly-appointed manager Christophe Galtier. Sergio Ramos was on the scoresheet as PSG dispatched French lower-league side Quivelly Rouen 2-0 in their opening pre-season friendly. But for the first time since taking charge of ‘Les Parisiens,’ Galtier will get the chance to field his all-star trio, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi. Paris’ household frontline excelled in 2021/22 as they netted a staggering 90 Ligue 1 goals last season, averaging 2.36 goals per match.

Meanwhile, Kawasaki Frontale cruised to an overwhelming 4-0 home triumph over J1 League strugglers Gamba Osaka in the build-up to this fixture, putting an end to an abysmal three-game winless streak across all competitions (D1, L2). More importantly, an emphatic victory over Gamba helped the defending Japanese champions register their first clean sheet in five matches, something that could prove hard to achieve against Paris’ free-scoring attack. However, a shutout may not matter after all if they can maintain their impressive track record in front of goal that has seen them net 4+ goals in three of their last five home outings.