The lowdown on Clermont-Paris!
History, stakes and the keys to the match! Here is everything you need to know before kick-off of Matchday 31 of Ligue 1 2021-2022 between Clermont Foot 63 and Paris Saint-Germain at the Stade Gabriel-Montpied.
A little history...
Paris Saint-Germain-Clermont, act two in the league. This season, Clermont became Les Rouge et Bleu’s 55th opponent in the top-flight. In the first match between the two sides, Les Parisiens ran out 4-0 winners at the Parc des Princes on 11 September.
The only competitive match between the two clubs in Auvergne is a cruel memory for the club from the capital: on 1 February 1997, in the Round of 16 of the Coupe de France, Clermont surprised the country when they knocked out Paris Saint-Germain (4-4, 4-3 on penalties), after Les Parisiens had been leading 4-1 before a lively end to the match. Since that encounter, the two sides have only played each other on one occasion, in a friendly on 19 July 2008, which Les Parisiens won 2-0 in Blois.
6 players have worn the shirts of both clubs: Sylvain Armand, Loris Arnaud, Loïck Landre, Granddi Ngoyi, Bruno Rodriguez, Didier Toffolo. Thierry Coutard, former PSG player, coached Clermont.
the stakes...
A 12-point lead and a better goal difference than Marseille in second place: Paris Saint-Germain are getting closer to winning a 10th Ligue 1 title ahead of their trip to Auvergne.
Les Parisiens will look to bring to an end their three-match losing streak away from home in Ligue 1 (Nantes 1-3, Nice 0-1, Monaco 0-3). Paris Saint-Germain haven’t suffered four defeats away from the Parc des Princes since the 2009-2010 season (Bordeaux 0-1, Rennes 0-1, Lille 1-3, Lyon 1-2).
A first league outing for Les Rouge et Bleu in Clermont, which is often a positive for the club from the capital: since the creation of Ligue 1 in 2002-2003, no club who has played Paris Saint-Germain at home for the first time in its history has ever come out on top, with the record books showing five wins and four draws (1-0 win at Le Mans (2003-2004), 1-1 at Istres (2004-2005), 0-0 at Grenoble (2008-2009), 5-2 at Boulogne sur Mer (2009-2010), 2-1 at Arles Avignon (2010-2011), 2-1 at Dijon, 2-2 at Evian TG (2011-2012), 4-0 at Gazelec Ajaccio (2015-2016) and 2-2 at Amiens (2017-2018).
the keys to the match...
The club from the capital will be able to look to an in-form Kylian Mbappé, who has scored 8 goals in his last 10 matches for Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1.
With 17 goals scored in the league, and sitting one goal behind Monaco’s Wissam Ben Yedder, the Paris number 7 is still in the running for a fourth consecutive golden boot in Ligue 1. Two players have previously achieved the feat in France: Carlos Bianchi (4 times from 1975-1979) and Jean-Pierre Papin (5 times from 1988-1992).
