adminPARIS. — Paris Saint-Germain cannot afford to let their concentration slip as they prepare for their Champions League soccer last 16 second leg tie at home to Bayer Leverkusen tonight, their coach Laurent Blanc believes.The French champions stormed to a 4-0 success in Germany, leaving the tie as good as over ahead of the Parc des Princes clash.
Added to that, PSG are on a run of five straight victories, having plundered 16 goals in that period, while Leverkusen only ended a five-match losing streak in drawing 1-1 at Hanover 96 on Saturday. If form and precedence were taken into account, there would be no doubt this tie was already done and dusted – no team has ever overturned a 4-0 first leg deficit in a Champions League knockout tie – but Blanc is not one to rest on his laurels.
“You always have to be demanding with your team,” said Blanc. In the Champions League, qualification is decided in the second match. For now, we don’t have it yet so we have to see through qualification. Whoever plays, we have the desire to win. That’s important because the biggest teams, even when going through difficult periods, they need to concentrate.”
The question of who plays will be an interesting one for PSG, for whom record-signing Edinson Cavani is available again having missed Saturday’s 3-0 win at Bastia after going back to Uruguay for personal reasons. — AFP.
Online Reporter