Preview: 5 things about Paris - Kolstad

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Paris Saint-Germain welcome Kolstad to the Stade de Pierre de Coubertin on Wednesday evening as part of EHF Champions League Matchday 8.

1 - THE TABLE

Beaten in the last two rounds by Kiel (28-34) and Kolstad (36-31), Paris are currently fourth in a particularly tight Group A. Tied with the Norwegians and Kielce, Raul Gonzalez's men will be keen to get back to winning ways at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin, which is expected to be sold out.

For their part, Kolstad made the most of Matchday 7, jumping from sixth to third place. In their first appearance in the EHF Champions League, Christian Berge's men have already beaten Paris and Kiel and are living up to their lofty ambitions.

2 - SECOND HALF!

At the halfway stage of the group phase, the capital club are just two points behind Kiel, who are still in the lead despite last week's heavy defeat by Aalborg (18-27). The Danes themselves are just two points clear of Szeged, currently sixth and provisionally qualified for the next round of the competition.

After seven matches, Les Rouge et Bleu are still very much in the driver's seat, with 218 goals to their name. Top scorer in the competition with 49 goals, Kamil Syprzak is the main weapon in Paris' attacking line. Our players have some important fixtures in the lead-up to the next break: in addition to hosting Kolstad, they have trips to Kiel (30 November) and Aalborg (7 December) on the agenda.

3 - THE OTHER MATCHES

Among the other matches in Group A, Kiel travel to Aalborg for another top-of-the-table clash. The Germans will be looking to bounce back from last week's heavy defeat at home to the defensively impregnable Danes (18-27). If they win again, Aalborg will overtake Kiel at the top of the group. After conceding their seventh defeat in as many games, Pelister will be looking to pick up their first points at home to a Szeged side who are gradually finding their feet and are now just one point behind the capital club. Finally, Zagreb have their work cut out at Kielce. The Croatians will be hoping to pull off a feat if they are to avoid falling completely adrift of the qualifying places for the final phase of the competition.

4 - HEAD TO HEAD

Parisians and Norwegians have only met once in their history, and that was just last week. In a frenzied Trondheim Spektrum, the Parisians fell apart in the second half, allowing Kolstad to claim a prestigious 36-31 victory and overtake the capital club in the standings. Raul Gonzalez's men will be hoping to get the better of the Norwegians with the help of a capacity crowd at Coubertin.

5 - HOW TO FOLLOW THE MATCH

Throw-off: 20:45
At the Stade Pierre de Coubertin: our ticket office
Television: Eurosport
Social networks: Live-tweet

(Credits: J. Azouze/PSG)